What Doesn't Kill You
by danceisthewindowtoyoursoul
Summary: Their father might be dead, but the lives of Jade and her little sister, Ruby, are far from normal. Follow them as they face the challenges of being famous, raising families, all while still trying to forget the nightmare that is their past. *Continuation of my "Ruby"series, sort of like an epilogue*
1. Chapter 1

**Hi all. So I had this idea awhile ago and I figured since _Ruby_ was fairly well received, I'd run with it. I know the series ended about a year and a half ago, and I did those kinda "deleted scenes" inbetween then and now, but I really want to do this. So I hope you enjoy this. This first chapter is a prologue to catch you up between the end of the series and around the time of the epilogue of the final story. Remember, Ruby's livechat took place in 2022. And s/o to sshaw101 for the awesome cover art!**

* * *

><p><em>December 31st, 2019<em>

_Ruby's POV _

"TWO MINUTES!" The MC on stage yells into the microphone, and the crowd around us begins to cheer.

"Two minutes." I smile up at Trevor, who has his arms wrapped around my waist from behind me.

We're standing in the middle of Times Square in New York, it's well below freezing, I can see my breath and I can't feel my toes, but we've seen so many great performers tonight, Taylor Swift, Cat Valentine, One Direction, Justin Timberlake, and best of all, I get to spend New Year's with him.

"10...9...8...7..6" The crowd chants, and Trevor's hands slip away, presumably so he can kiss me at midnight "5...4...3...2...1...HAPPY NEW YEAR!"

"Happy New Year!" I exclaim and turn to kiss Trevor, but he's gone.

"Ruby!" I hear him shout over the crowd's screaming

I look down to see my boyfriend on one knee...holding a ring.

"WILL YOU MARRY ME?" He yells

"YES!" I yell back

The people around us notice and begin to cheer as he stands up, sliding the ring on my hand.

"HEY SHE SAID YES!" Someone screams

I wrap my arms around his neck and he picks me up and spins me around.

"I love you!" I whisper to him

"I love you too!"

* * *

><p><em>May 13th, 2020<em>

_Ruby's POV _

"Just sign on the dotted line, Ruby." Andre smiles "Prepare to change your future."

He slides the contract and pen across the desk to me.

"You really think I have what it takes?" I ask him one final time.

"Kiddo. I've _known_ you have what it takes since I heard you sing at the showcase your freshman year." He laughs "I wouldn't be offering you all of this if I wasn't one hundred percent confident in you."

"Alright." I blush and pick up the fountain pen and adjusting the contact in front of me.

_Ruby Kaitlyn West _I sign.

Thats it. It's official. I just signed my first record deal.

"Alright!" Andre cheers, standing up and extending his hand to me "I'm looking forward to working with you!"

"Same." I smile and shake his hand

"I'll be in touch soon." he informs me "We have lots to do before we start recording. You know, brainstorming, publicity stuff, but first up is going to be finding you a backing band."

"I can't wait!" I exclaim "And about that band...I think I know a guitarist."

* * *

><p><em>September 5th, 2020<em>

_Ruby's POV _

"Ladies and gentlemen, today we have gathered together to celebrate the marriage of these two people." The priest says "Marriage is the promise between two people who love each other, who trust each other, who honor one another as individuals in that togetherness, and who wish to spend rest of their lives with each other. It enables the two separate souls to share their desires, longings, dreams, joys and sorrows, and to help each other through all uncertainties of life."

The church is beautiful, all decorated in light pink and white. Jade and Talia look amazing in their bridesmaid dresses and Sophie, adorable in her flower girl dress, standing next to her mother. To my left are the groomsmen, Beck, Trevor's brother Derek, and his college roommate, Connor.

"Trevor, do you take Ruby to be your wife, your partner in life and your one true love? Will you cherish her friendship and love her today, tomorrow and forever? Will you trust and honor her, laugh with her and cry with her? Will you be faithful through good times and bad, in sickness and in health as long as you both shall live?"

"I do." Trevor grins.

"Ruby, do you take Trevor to be your husband, your partner in life and your one true love? Will you cherish his friendship and love him today, tomorrow and forever? Will you trust and honor him, laugh with him and cry with him? Will you be faithful through good times and bad, in sickness and in health as long as you both shall live?"

"I do."

"The wedding ring symbolizes unity, a circle unbroken, without beginning or end. And today Trevor and Ruby exchange these rings as confirmation of their vows to join their lives, to work at all times to create a life that is complete and unbroken and to love each other unconditionally. Trevor, take this ring and place it on your bride's finger, and state your pledge to her, repeating after me:"

"With this ring I thee wed.  
>I offer you my hand, and my heart as I know they will be safe with you.<br>All that I am I give to you and all that I have I share with you." He grins and slides the gold band onto my finger.

"Ruby" the priest says turning now to hand me Trevor's ring "take this ring and place it on your groom's finger, and state your pledge to him, repeating after me"

"With this ring I thee wed.  
>I offer you my hand, and my heart as I know they will be safe with you.<br>All that I am I give to you and all that I have I share with you." I smile, and slide the ring onto his finger.

"Until now Ruby and Trevor have spent each moment of their lives as separate individuals. But from this day on, and every day after this day shall be shared and spent as one. By the power enthroned in me, by the state of California, I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may now kiss your bride." The priest states

Trevor takes me in his arms and kisses me. We're not making out, but it's more than a little peck.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you Mr. and Mrs. Trevor Samuels."

His mom starts to cry, and when I look over, I see Jade is crying too.

* * *

><p><em>January 2nd, 2021<em>

_Ruby's POV _

The roar of the crowd is deafening, even from backstage.

Even now, it doesn't feel real yet. That I have an album. An album that's number two on the billboard top 100. That there's a crowd of screaming fans, waiting to see me.

"Hey." Trevor says, resting a hand on my shoulder as I insert my ear pieces "You'll be amazing. I know it."

He gives me a quick peck on the lips before a handler whisks him away and over towards the stage.

Another handler comes and ushers me to the tunnel that will lead me to the platform underneath the stage.

"Alright ladies and gentlemen one minute to showtime!" The tour manager yells.

The band on stage begins to play the instrumentals of my first song and the roar of the crowd becomes louder, which I didn't think was possible.

I fiddle nervously with my pink bedazzled microphone, tossing it back and forth from hand to hand. I think about, Beck and Jade, sitting in the front row with Sophie, and about how everything I've ever worked for has prepared me for this.

My first live concert.

The ten second countdown begin and my platform begins to rise up to the stage. The light is blinding, the crowd, deafening. Here goes nothing...

"Hello Los Angeles! Who's ready to party!?"

* * *

><p><em>December 24th, 2021 <em>

_Ruby's POV _

"I think I'm gonna be sick." I admit.

I look to Trevor for reassurance, but I find none. He grips my hand tightly, but his face is blank and pale.

"Trev?" I choke, hoping to get some response

"You're sure?" He asks the doctor

"I'my one hundred percent positive." He says sympathetically.

When I took the pregnancy test last week, we we're thrilled to pieces when it came back positive. So when I made the doctors appointment, we we're expecting it to be normal, or as close to normal as you can get. The last thing we we're expecting was...

"Oh my god." I breathe "Triplets."

* * *

><p><em>May 14th, 2022<em>

_Ruby's POV _

"JADE!" I yell "JADE!"

"I heard you the first seven times!" She exclaims walking into my bedroom "What's the matter?"

"Can I have some more vitamin water?" I ask, holding up my glass "Please?"

"Yeah yeah." She sighs, taking the glass from me and exiting the room again.

"I LOVE YOU!" I yell after her

"YEAH I KNOW!" She yells back.

I'm on bed rest, and it sucks. I can't do anything except lay in bed all day, which is really terrible when Trevor has meetings or errands to run. Luckily, I have my sister to keep me company.

"Thanks so much." I smile when Jade returns with my glass

"No problem." She assures me and lays down on the bed next to me, flipping on the TV.

A few months ago, we found out Trevor and I are having two boys and a little girl. They most likely started out as fraternal twins, a boy and a girl, but the boy's egg split to become identical boys instead, resulting in the three babies. We had a premature labor scare a few weeks ago, which is very common with multiples. So my doctor out me on bed rest to try to bring me as close as possible to my due date of July 25th, but everyone knows I won't make it that long. And honestly, the sooner, the better.

"I'm so done being pregnant!" I groan.

"Ha!" She smirks "Now you know how I felt."

I grab her hand and place it on my belly so she can feel the three very active babies moving around inside me.

"Try having three." I say flatly.

"Point taken." she laughs

* * *

><p><em>July 29th, 2022<em>

_Ruby's POV_

"Hey everybody!" I smile into the camera "Ruby Samuels here! How's everybody's day goin'?"

I'm doing a twit cam from the living room of my house in L.A, since that's what celebrities do for their fans.

"So!" I begin "Let's start this thing off right shall we? Tweet me your questions with the hashtag #q&awithruby and I'll try to answer as many as I can!"


	2. Chapter 2

_Ruby's POV_

"Finally." I sigh as I close the bathroom door quietly behind me.

All three of the babies are asleep early tonight, and now I can enjoy a nice relaxing shower. My last chance before we leave for my new tour.

I plug my phone into the stereo system in the bathroom and step into the shower. When I turn it on, the rush of warm water all over my body provides immediate stress relief, and all my worries melt away temporarily.

Tour wardrobes, setlists, diets, P90X programs, promotions, and screaming babies are the farthest thing from my mind.

"_Dear future husband, here's a few things you'll need to know if you want to be my one and only all my life_" I sing along to the music blasting from the speakers as I rub shampoo into my hair "_Dear future husband, if you wanna get that special lovin', tell me I'm beautiful each and every night_"

"Future husband!?" Trevor exclaims, startling me "What happened to me?"

I turn around to see my husband standing, naked, in the shower behind me.

"Its just a song, babe." I smile and wipe some soap on his nose before turning around to wash the shampoo out "You're my one and only. Don't worry."

"I better be." He laughs as he wraps his arms around my waist and begins kissing my neck, only stopping when the shampoo washing off my head runs into his mouth.

"That's what you get for interrupting my shower." I chuckle as he tries to wash his mouth out under the stream of water. "Woah babe, excited to see me?"

"Huh?" He looks confused

I glance down and then back at him

"Oh." He laughs, and wraps his arms around me, pulling me into him "You bet."

He begins kissing me, pushing me up against the wall as he does so. The tile is cold on my bare skin at first, but I ignore it.

"I guess...now...would be...a bad time...to...tell you...my sister...is gonna be here...in fifteen...minutes..." I gasp between kisses.

"Aw come on!" He groans and pulls away

"Hey I'm not saying we have to stop." I smile and pull him back towards me "I'm just saying we have to be quick."

"I can do quick." He shrugs and we continue

* * *

><p>"You two having fun up there?" Jade asks when Trevor and I walk downstairs about half an hour later<p>

Shes sitting on a couch in our living room, flipping through a baby name book.

"How long have you been here?" I ask her

"About twenty minutes." She sighs

oops. So much for making it quick.

"Sorry Jade." Trevor apologizes "We lost track of time."

"Yeah that's what happened." She smirks

"Whatever." I sigh and sit down on the couch next to her "What's up? You said it was some kind of emergency...?"

"I hate the name Logan!" She exclaims

"Woah hey, okay." I defend "Calm down."

Pregnancy hormones and mood swings. Gotta love em.

"I can't calm down!" She's crying now "I changed my mind but it's too late now because my kid already announced it to the world on your live stream!"

"Trevor, honey. I think I hear Aaron crying. Will you go check on him please?" I ask

"I don't hear anything." He shrugs, looking confused.

"Just go check on them, please." I sigh

"Got it." He nods, having finally understood

"So what happened?" I ask once Trevor has disappeared upstairs again "Why the baby name panic all of a sudden?"

"I don't know!" She cries "I just don't like the name Logan anymore! It's a boys name! She'll get made fun of and it'll be all my fault! _And_ she's gonna be here in less than a month and I don't know what to do!"

"Just keep looking!" I encourage, holding up the baby name book she had just been reading.

"Don't you think I've looked?" she scoffs "it's impossible!"

"Didn't you name Sophie in labor?" I ask

"Well yeah...but I don't want to wait that long this time!"

"Have you talked to Beck?"

"No..." She sighs "He was at work all day and I came over here as soon as he got home."

"Why don't you talk to him about it before you start freaking out like this?" I suggest

"Yeah, that's probably a good idea." she chuckles "Im sorry for freaking out, baby sister."

"Don't worry about it." I assure her "It's what I'm here for."

"Have you finished packing?" She asks

"Pshh! No." I scoff "I won't be finished packing until we leave."

"Well, don't let me keep you!" She insists as she stands up, presumably to leave

"You can stay if you want!" I tell her "Really, I'm not gonna see you for a while after tomorrow!"

"Nah, I have a house to clean, a baby to name, a waiting husband, and a little girl who needs help with her math homework." She sighs "Oh! And a script to finish."

"It never stops." I laugh

"And it never will." She agrees as we move towards the entryway

I hug her and then open the door for her

"Have fun with your husband." She winks as she makes her way down the front walk "But not too much fun!"

"I should say the same for you!" I call to her as she opens the door to her car

She flicks me off, and I return the gesture, laughing as she honks and pulls down the drive. I close the door behind me and return upstairs to finish packing.

* * *

><p>"I'm gonna miss you so much Aunt Ruby!" Sophie cries into my shoulder<p>

"Don't worry Soph. I'll be back when your baby sister is born. Okay?"

"Kay." She sighs and turns to walk back to her parents

We're standing on the runway at LAX. The babies, all asleep, Trevor and I are getting ready to board a jet to London to kick off the start of my second tour. Three shows in London, two in Dublin, one in Glasgow, one in Antwerp, one in Amsterdam, one in Berlin, one in Milan,two in Paris and then two in Barcelona finish up the European leg. Then two shows in Toyko, and then one in Melbourne, Sydney, and Perth, Australia. All followed by a short break (strategically planned around Jade's due date), then the American shows.

"Call me tonight, okay?" Jade tells me as she pulls me into a hug

"I will. I promise."

"And take good care of those little ones." She smiles, gesturing to the babies fast asleep in their car seats

"I will." I repeat "You take care of your little ones. And let me know as soon as you come up with a new name!"

Apparently Logan Michelle Oliver is no longer in the running for baby names.

"I will." She smiles

"Promise?" I ask, holding up my pinkie finger

"Promise!" She laughs, wrapping her pinkie around mine.

"Alright alright time to go!" Trevor calls to me, picking up Aaron and Jonah's car seats and heading towards the plane.

"Okay!" I laugh as I pick up Olivia's car seat and turn to follow my husband

"Ruby Kaitlyn!" Beck calls after me

"What?" I groan, turning around

"Forgetting someone?" He says like it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"Sorry." I laugh as I run back to give my brother-in-law a hug

"Be safe okay?" He tells me "And keep an eye on Trevor, who knows what he'll get into."

"Don't worry." I laugh "I will."

I finish saying goodbye, then I board the plane, baby seat in tow.

Once the car seats are strapped in and the babies are all sucking happily on pacifiers, I take my seat next to Trevor.

"Ready?" He smiles, taking my hand and weaving his fingers in between mine

"Ready." I grin


	3. Chapter 3

_Ruby's POV_

I wake up in an unfamiliar place.

At first, I panic. But I calm down once I realize Trevor is in bed asleep next to me.

We arrived in London two days ago, and my days have been mainly filled with tour preparations, interviews, and the occasional sightseeing. Tonight is my first show at the O2 Arena. I'm definitely feeling a strong emotion, but I can't yet tell if it's excited or nervous.

I roll over and grab my phone of the bedside table, yawning as I do so. It's 8:30. I technically don't have to be up for another hour, but I can't bring myself to fall back asleep. So, I open my twitter app and send out my first tweet of the day:

**_RubyKaitlyn_**: _It's show day! Cant wait to see all you lovelies at the O2 tonight! #excited_

Trevor still isn't awake, and I honestly don't want to wake him, since he's technically performing tonight as well, so I open up 2048 and try desperately to beat the game, a personal goal I've yet to accomplish. After playing for about 10 minutes or so, I hear the sounds of a soft whimper coming from the other side of the room. One of my babies is awake.

Slipping my phone into the pocket of my sweatpants, I throw the sheets off my body and pad across the room to the three portable cribs we have set up there. Aaron is the one crying.

"Hey buddy." I smile as I lift him out of the crib "Good morning."

He smiles at me as I rest him on my hip and move to the couch to change his diaper, trying my hardest not to wake the three other sleeping people in the room. When he's dressed again, I pick him up and grab my wallet.

"C'mon Bud." I whisper "Let's go try and find Mommy and Daddy some coffee."

* * *

><p>"I think I'll open in this one tonight." I say coming out of the changing area in my dressing room.<p>

I'm wearing a long sleeved, dark purple shirt and a pair of black high-waisted shorts.

"It looks great." Julia smiles, bouncing Olivia in her lap "What do you think, Livy? Hm? Doesn't Mommy look pretty?"

_Mommy_. I'm not used to that.

Olivia smiles up at me, then goes back to chewing on her fist like she was before.

"See?" Julia laughs "She agrees with me."

Julia is engaged to one of the band members, Zach. She's going to be the one responsible for my babies while Trevor and I are on stage, obviously because we can't be two places at the same time.

"Knock knock!" I hear Trevor yell from outside the door "You decent in there?"

"Yeah come on in!" I yell back "Like he cares if I'm decent anyway..."

Trevor enters the room holding Jonah, following behind him is Zach with Aaron, Mitch, and Drew. All six of them wear the same outfit.

"Well?" My husband asks, turning slowly so I can admire his outfit "What do you think of the official Ruby Samuels Back-Up-Band Tour Outfit?"

Each guy wears a pair of black converse, a pair of dark wash blue jeans, a light blue dress shirt rolled up to the elbows with a bright red tie, under a dark grey vest.

"I love it!" I exclaim, the stylists did an amazing job "Where on earth did you find outfits for the boys?"

"Wasn't that hard!" He shrugs "it's amazing what you can find on the internet."

Just then my phone, sitting on my vanity table, springs to life. Vibrating and blaring the lyrics to Reba's "My Sister, My Friend."

"It's Jade!" Everyone in the room seems to say at once

"Oh shut up!" I laugh and answer "Hey sis, what's up?"

"Hi baby sister!" I can practically hear her smiling "I just wanted to wish you luck!"

"Thanks!" I say "I wish you could be here to watch!"

"Me too kiddo, me too. But your baby niece isn't gonna allow that this time around."

"How are you feeling?" I ask

"Okay." She chuckles "But I'm done. I want this kid out."

"I know _that_ feeling."

Seven and a half months with triplets is an experience I'll _never_ forget.

"Oh Jade. You should see the outfits the boys are wearing right now!" I gasp "They match the band!"

"Send a picture!" She demands

"Alright, but I'm gonna have to let you go soon, we have some last minute stuff to go through before dinner."

"Alright, Rube. Break a leg! Love you!"

"Love you too!"

* * *

><p>"Hello London!" I exclaim "Is everybody having a good time?"<p>

The roar of the crowd increases significantly.

"AHHHH!" I mimic them "Good! I'm glad!"

"I LOVE YOU!" A male voice yells somewhere near the front row

"Aw thanks!" I blush "I love you too!"

"Hey!" Trevor exclaims

"Oh stop it you." I giggle "Calm down."

"_Everybody wanna steal my girl, Everybody wanna take her heart away, Couple billion in the whole wide world, Find another one 'cause she belongs to__ me._.." Trevor sings into his microphone before the rest of the band starts to sing and play along with him "_Everybody wanna steal my girl, Everybody wanna take her heart away, Couple billion in the whole wide world, Find another one 'cause she belongs to__ me!_"

"Are you finished?" I laugh

"_She belongs to me!_" He sings "Okay. Now I'm done."

"Now that we've had that _wonderful_ intermission..." I laugh "Let's keep things rolling shall we? Here's a song off my first album I think everyone will know..."


	4. Chapter 4

_Ruby's POV_

"_And she destroys me in that t-shirt, And I love her so much it hurts, I never meant to fall like this, She don't just rain she pou__rs.._." I sing as the hot water from my morning shower sprays all over my body "_That girl right there's, The perfect storm.._."

I hear the bathroom door open and Trevor steps in

"Hey babe?"

"Yes dear?" I sing-song

"Not that I don't enjoy listening to you sing, but your children are hungry and I can't feed all three of them at a time."

"Alright." I laugh and shut the water off "I'll be out in a minute."

I step out and wrap a towel around me and after drying off, getting dressed, and throwing my hair into a quick messy bun, I walk out into the hotel room to join my family.

Trevor has Aaron and Jonah propped up against the pillows on the bed so they don't choke on the milk. He's holding a bottle in each hand, and both babies are eating. I walk over and grab the third bottle of the table, then lift Olivia out of her pac-n-play.

"Good morning Livy baby!" I coo "Did Daddy already get you dressed?"

"Isn't Daddy awesome?" Trevor smiles

I smile back at him, then move to the couch and begin to feed my daughter her bottle.

"Are you ready to get on the airplane, Livy?" I ask "Are you ready to go to France?"

I'm honestly very excited to go to France. We've already played the first nine shows of the tour, all over Europe. But I remember from my last tour that Paris was my favorite. Just something about the city, I'm not sure what.

"I think Mommy is ready to go to France." Trevor smirks as he finishes up feeding the boys and places them in their car seats "Is Mommy done packing?"

"No!" I scoff

"Then give me the baby and go finish up so we don't miss the flight!" He suggests

I hand Olivia off to him, then return to the bathroom and finish packing up my toiletries.

* * *

><p>"Oh Jonah, baby boy." I try to soothe my crying son as I pace up and down the jet's isle "It's okay, you're okay."<p>

Flying with babies. Gotta love it.

The first flight from Los Angles to London was the worst, because all three of the cried and screamed their heads off for a good hour to two hours, and Trevor and I were the only ones on the private jet. Luckily though, the second flight to Germany and now this flight to France, the band and their families are also on board, so we have the extra help if we need it. Thankfully, Aaron seems content just sitting in his car seat playing with a toy, and Olivia is fast asleep in hers, both of them sucking on pacifiers.

Jonah, however, will not stop crying long enough to keep his pacifier in his mouth. And nothing I've been doing seems to help him calm down.

"Here," Trevor sighs handing me a freshly made bottle "See if the swallowing helps with the pressure build up."

"Thank you." I say quietly, taking the bottle from him "Jonah baby, you wanna try some milk? Hm?"

I sit back down in my seat and cradle him in my right arm, holding the bottle with my left.

"Shhhh." I try to calm him "Shhh, it's okay."

He continues to scream and won't allow me to put the bottle in his mouth.

"Jonah..." I sigh "Baby you're okay!"

The crying continues, so I place the bottle in the cup holder and bring him to my shoulder like I had him before.

"_Would you let me see beneath you're beautiful? Would you let me see beneath you're perfect?_" I sing to him "_Take it off now, boy, take it off now, boy, I wanna see inside, Would you let me see beneath you're beautiful tonight, oh, toni__ght_?"

The singing hasn't quieted him down completely, but it's reduced him to a soft whimper. So I cradle him again, and this time, he allows me to slip the bottle right into his mouth. He begins drinking and after a while his eyes start to become heavy. Eventually, he's asleep.

"Ruby Samuels." Trevor smirks from his seat across the isle from mine "The baby whisperer."

* * *

><p>"Isn't it beautiful?" I ask as Trevor and I stand on our balcony of our Paris hotel room later that night. We have the perfect view of the Eiffel Tower, all lit up.<p>

"Tu as mal à tête." He smiles at me and nuzzles his face into my neck

"What did you just say?" I laugh

"I said _you're_ beautiful." He whispers

"No." I chuckle "You told me that I have a headache."

"No I didn't." He defends

"Trevor. I took four years of French in high school and two in college, you won't win this argument."

"Fine Miss Smarty Pants!" He teases "I'd like to see you come up with something better."

"Voulez vous coucher avec moi, Monsieur Samuels?" I muse, the step back away from him, re-entering the hotel suite.

Creeping past the three babies asleep I their cribs, I go into the bedroom, Trevor follows, closing the door behind him.

"You gonna tell me what you just said?" He asks

"Take a guess." I tell him, biting my lip and unbuttoning the flannel shirt I'm wearing, letting it drop to the floor.

"I'm not really sure..." he smiles, moving closer to me "but I like the looks of this."

He pushes me backwards onto the bed and throws himself on top of me, kissing me softly and slowly.

"Je t'aime." I smile as he pulls his shirt off, and I run my hand along his rock hard abs, and then a little lower to something else that is also, rock hard.

"See that." He whispers as he undoes my jeans and slides them off "I know what that means."


	5. Chapter 5

_Ruby's POV_

"Barcelonaaaaaa!" I yell into the microphone "Is everyone having a good time?"

My question is met with the immediate roar of the crowd.

"I'm glad." I smile "Now I think it's time to introduce some pretty fantastic people."

I walk down the catwalk and back onto the main stage

"Let's give it up for the band!" I exclaim "Over here on the keyboard we have Mr. Mitch Hines!"

The crowd cheers as Mitch smiles and begins playing the next song on his keyboard.

"Over here to my right it's Drew Stevens on bass guitar!"

Drew begins to play as well.

"On the drums, give it up for Zach Skate!"

Zach hits the pedal on the bass drum and the stage becomes instantly louder when he joins in playing with Drew and Mitch.

"And finally, over here to my right..." the crowd goes insane because they know exactly who I'm going to introduce "The greatest guitar player any diva could ever ask for...my husband, Mr. Trevor Samuels!"

"Hola Barcelona!" he laughs into the microphone as he begins to play

"Let's go!" I yell as we start the next song

* * *

><p>"Yo! Ruby!" Trevor yells from the main part of the hotel room "You've got a skype call!"<p>

"Just a second!" I yell back as I finish changing Olivia's diaper "Come on Livy baby, let's go see who's on the computer."

I pick the baby up and rest her on my hip as I walk out of the bedroom and see Trevor talking to someone on the laptop that's sitting on the coffee table.

"Hey here she is!" He smiles as I sit down next to him

"Aunt Ruby!" Sophie exclaims on the computer screen

"Hi Soph!" I smile at her "I miss you!"

"I miss you more!" She groans "When are you coming home?"

"When your sister is born!" I tell her

"How long is that?" She asks

"HOPEFULLY REALLY SOON!" Jade yells from somewhere in the background

"Are you being good for Mommy, Miss Sophie Marie?" I ask her as I kiss the top of Olivia's head.

"Yes." she rolls her eyes

"Hey now kiddo," Trevor laughs "The more you behave the better mood Mommy is in."

"I heard that!"

"You were meant to!"

"Sophie, sweetie, put Mommy on." I tell her

"Okay! Mommy! Aunt Ruby wants to talk to you!"

A few seconds later, Jade appears in the frame behind Sophie.

"Soph did you finish your homework?" She asks her daughter

"No." Sophie says shyly

"Why don't you go finish it while I talk to Aunt Ruby?"

"Okay." Sophie groans and hops out of the chair she had been sitting in "Bye Aunt Ruby, bye Uncle T, bye Livy! Love you!"

"Love you too." Trevor and I say in unison

"Hey baby sister." Jade sighs as she sits down in the chair where Sophie had been sitting

"Hey." I say sympathetically "How are you feeling?"

"Tired." she laughs "And done being pregnant."

"Well you've felt that way for a while."

"Yeah I know." She smiles "Jeez, I've gotta take care of the house, and the kid, and try to finish this script by the time the baby comes, AND be pregnant."

"At least it's only one." I remind her

"Yeah." She chuckles "At least it's only one."

"How's Beck?" I ask, stroking Livy's hair

"He's good. He should be home soon actually, I'm surprised he's not yet."

"IM HOME!" Beck yells

"Just kidding." Jade laughs "ON THE COMPUTER!"

"Hey!" he says entering the room "Whatcha doin?"

"Talking to Ruby and Trevor." She tells him "Say hi."

"Hi kiddo!" Beck waves, appearing next to Jade

"Hi Beck." I roll my eyes, I never did quite grow out of 'kiddo'

"Hey. As long as I'm older than you, you're kiddo!" He laughs, having sensed my annoyance

"So forever?" I scoff

"Exactly!"

"DADDY!" Sophie giggles and runs into the room

"Hi Princess!" He greets her, picking her up and spinning her around

"Hey the whole family is here!" Sophie laughs

"Not quite!" Trevor says and reaches down to grab Aaron and Jonah from where they had been playing on the floor, resting one baby on each knee "Now we're all here!"

"We miss you guys!" I tell them

"I guarantee we miss you more." Jade says wide-eyed nodding towards Sophie

"Yeah!" Sophie pouts

"We'll see you soon, though!" I tell them "Promise!"

Theres a beeping sound in the background of their feed

"That's dinner." Jade frowns "We gotta go."

"Can we call back later Mommy?" Sophie asks

"Aw Soph I have a show tonight." I tell her

"And you have ballet." Jade reminds her

"Oh yeah." She sighs "See you later then I guess."

"We love you, Sophie!" Trevor tells her

"I love you too!" She smiles

"Bye!" Everyone says in unison, and then the call ends.


	6. Chapter 6

_**PopTiger Magazine Australia Brings You and Exclusive Interview With International Pop-Superstar, Ruby Samuels! **_

_**She Dishes on Being a Mom, a wife, and Keeping in Touch on Tour! **_

Pop Tiger: _Did you always know this is what you wanted to do with your life? Has your focus always been performing? _

Ruby: _Subconsciously I think yes. But I definitely experimented a lot in high school. I did a few plays, I sang in our big showcase every year. My junior and senior year I was on the dance team and I ran track and field. I was my husband, Trevor's personal cheerleader at all his baseball games...not that its relevant but... _

Pop Tiger: _How and when did you meet your husband Trevor?_

Ruby: _We met at the very end of our freshman year of high school, at my older sister's graduation ceremony. His older brother was also graduating. He just came over and sat down next to me, we started talking and I don't know, things just...clicked. It's hard to believe that was ten years ago, it feels like it was only yesterday._

Pop Tiger: _So you have your siblings to thank, technically?_

Ruby: _I guess you could say that, yeah. I actually have my sister to thank for a lot of things, I don't know where I'd be without her._

Pop Tiger: _How so?_

Ruby: _Well, she basically raised me from freshman year up until I left for college. It's a long personal story with details I'm not yet ready to share with the world...but I really admire her. She sacrificed so much trying to take care of my niece and I, and she always encouraged me to keep striving to try and reach my goals, I honestly don't know where I'd be without her._

Pop Tiger: _Are you two still close?_

Ruby: _Of course! I text her constantly, we talk on the phone at least once a week, and I skype with her and her daughter when ever I can. She's my best friend next to Trevor, and I miss her terribly when I'm away for long stretches of time. Luckily, after we finish up my shows here in Australia, we have a couple weeks off before we start the North American leg, so we'll get to be home for a while._

Pop Tiger: _That's a lot of traveling to be doing. What's it like traveling with newborn triplets?_

Ruby: _Well technically, they're not newborns. Jeez I don't know if I could handle touring having just had them. They're five months old now. And as for traveling, it's pretty hit or miss. When we're on a bus, which we usually are, it's not so bad. We can set up their pac-n-plays for when they sleep, and they're still little enough that they don't really need much to keep them entertained. Flying however, is a completely different story. The first time we took them on a plane was a nightmare! They screamed and cried for about two to three hours until they exhausted themselves and fell asleep. Luckily, they've gotten used to it now, so it's not as hard. They still don't enjoy it, but they're more calm._

Pop Tiger: _I think we're all dying to know, how on earth did you get back into such great shape after you had the babies?_

Ruby: _Lots and LOTS of hard work, haha. I did P90X for a good three months straight, I went running every morning, and I ate right. Anything is possible if you're dedicated enough! Plus, running around taking care of three babies all the time has it's exercise benefits as well!_

Pop Tiger: _Did your due date have any influence on the tour?_

Ruby: _Kinda, but not really. When I found out I was pregnant, we'd already set a release date for my second album. The date was close enough that if I pushed it back, the fans would be extremely upset, and there's nothing I hate more than disappointing my fans. They're 75% of the reason I'm where I am today, and I do everything in my power to give all that dedication back to them. So we kept everything as it was. I went out and I was promoting the album while I was pregnant. Other women have done the same thing, so I didn't see why I couldn't. The tour dates were somewhat effected, but maybe by only a couple weeks or so. I didn't want anything to have to change._

Pop Tiger: _What was your reaction when you found out there were three babies instead of just the anticipated one?_

Ruby: _I was so scared! I really don't know how else I can describe it. I was like "I was worried about having to handle one! How on earth am i going to take care of three!?" But I knew I'd have Trevor by my side the entire way, and he was and continues to be amazing. Our families really helped us out too in the beginning, especially my sister. After a couple months though, we got the hang of it, we're pros._

Pop Tiger: _Have you heard people are saying you could be the next Taylor Swift or Katy Perry?_

Ruby: _I'm actually compared to Taylor Swift a lot actually, and I honestly think it's because our sound is so similar you know? Mainly pop with a little bit of country influence. But when I hear people comparing me to artists like her or Katy, it's surreal to me. Like those are two amazingly incredibly talented artists! People I idolized growing up and still idolize today! Honestly, if I were to meet either one of them, if probably have a fangirls attack. And you're saying I'm good enough to be compare to them? Thats insane. Absolutely no way I'll ever be as good as them. _

Pop Tiger: _One final question. What are your plans for the future? Both personally and musically?_

Ruby: _Well to be honest, I'm not really sure. We're going to start work on a third album at some point, which is really exciting . I love making music, and I'll be doing that until the day I die. As for the rest of life, who knows? We'll see what fate has in store for me._


	7. Chapter 7

_Ruby's POV_

"Ruby! Trevor! Over here!" A paparazzi yells

"How was Europe?" Another one asks

Flash bulbs are blinding as Trevor and I make our way through LAX, heads down, sunglasses on, not saying anything to anyone, with baby car seats in tow.

"Is it true your pregnant again, Ruby?"

"What?" I shriek "No!"

"Babe! Keep walking!" Trevor reminds me

This is the worst part of being a 'celebrity', even though I don't like to think of myself that way. These sleazes show up everywhere, trying to force their way into our personal lives. It's only really terrible when they know we're going to be somewhere, I guess. We can go shopping, or to dinner, and usually we'll be okay. But if something is scheduled and public ahead of time, like an interview or an appearance, then we're screwed. Like today, it was never a secret we were returning home for a while between the European and North American legs of my tour.

A few officers from airport security meet us at the elevators and usher us inside, trying to prevent any nosey reporters or photographers from following us.

"Do you have anything to say, Ruby?" Someone yells

"Nothing at this time." I say sweetly with a fake smile, like I've rehearsed it a million times, which I have.

The doors close and I let out a sigh of relief as I set Jonah's carseat down on the floor next to me.

"You alright, Ms. Samuels?" One of the guards asks me

"I'm fine, thank you." I tell him "And please, call me Ruby."

"Sure, Ruby." He smiles "Your car is waiting at one of the private pick-up zones, but there will probably be more people around still."

"Great." I sigh

"Would you like us to accompany you?" Another guard asks

"Please." Trevor answers "If you wouldn't mind."

"Sure. That's our job!" He assures us as the doors open again

I pick up the baby seat and follow the guards out

"RUBY!"

"TREVOR!"

"WHO DESIGNED YOUR SUNGLASSES?"

"WHEN ARE YOU RELEASING YOUR THIRD ALBUM?"

I keep my head down and keep walking. I try to focus on Jonah, making faces at him as I walk, trying to make him laugh so the noise and flashes don't freak him out too much.

We reach the doors and I'm hit with a blast of warm air.

I missed L.A.

The driver already has the door to the limo open for us, and more security personnel are loading our bags into the back. I set Jonah's seat down and climb inside. When I'm in, Trevor hands a seat in one by one so I can fasten them in safely, then climbs in too, closing the door behind him.

"Was it that crazy during the last one?" I ask him as we sit back in our seats

"Well there was definitely paparazzi..." He sighs "But there's definitely more now."

"Crap..."

"Hey now," he smiles and puts an arm around me as the car pulls away from the curb "That's good! It means you're just becoming more and more popular!"

"Yeah I know." I whisper and lean my head on his chest, "But it never stops being scary."

"I know." He sighs and kisses the top of my head "I know."

* * *

><p>"Goodnight babies. Sleep tight, I love you." I whisper as I close the door to the nursery later that night<p>

I turn and walk down the hallway to the master bedroom, where Trevor is already getting ready for bed, even though it's only 8:00.

"Oh my god! I'm exhausted!" I exclaim and let myself fall down onto our bed "And I missed this bed!"

"I'm so proud of you babe." Trevor smiles "You did fourteen shows in a row without a break!"

"Well thanks for helpin' me." I chuckle, letting my head fall into the pillow when I finish the sentence

"Aw you're welcome. Are you going to shower tonight?" he asks

"Nope!" I exclaim "I'm goin' to bed! Don't wake me up tomorrow unless it's a major emergency!"

"Alright." He laughs and kisses me "Goodnight superstar, I'm still proud of you."

"Thanks." I smirk

"So you're going to sleep in skinny jeans and a crop top?" He chuckles

"Shit!" I yell, probably a little louder than I should

I get up and drag myself over to the dresser, grabbing a pair of pajama pants and a tank top, so I can move to the bathroom attached to the bedroom and change.

"What? Suddenly don't feel comfortable changing in front of me anymore?" He calls after me

"No, I'm just too tired for sex right now!" I call back to him through the door "So the last thing I want to do is get you excited!"

"Too late, superstar!"


	8. Chapter 8

_Ruby's POV_

I press the bell at Beck and Jade's front door ands stand back next to Trevor, waiting for someone to answer.

A minute or so later, a very pregnant, very tired-looking Jade answers.

"Oh my gosh! Hey!" She smiles pulling me into a hug "I missed you guys!"

"I missed you too!" I tell her as I enter the house "Did you tell her we were back yet?"

"No!" Jade tells me "HEY SOPHIE?"

"YEAH?" she responds

"CAN YOU COME DOWN HERE FOR A MINUTE PLEASE?" Jade calls to her

"UHG DO I HAVE TO?"

"THATS FINE." Trevor yells "WE CAN COME BACK LATER!"

Not even seconds later, Sophie appears at the top of the staircase.

"YOU'RE BACK!" She smiles and comes bounding down the stairs

Trevor sets the two car seats he was holding down and runs to the bottom of the stairs. Sophie jumps from the third or fourth step, straight into his arms. He catches her and spins her around a few times before setting her down.

"I missed you, Uncle T!" She giggles

"Hey what am I?" I say, acting hurt by their embrace, even though I'm not.

"Aunt Ruby!" She smiles and runs over to me hugging my waist

"Hey Soph." I greet her and kiss the top of her head "Wow! You're so tall!"

"You weren't gone _that_ long!" She laughs

"You're right." Trevor says "Maybe Aunt Ruby is just shrinking."

"Watch it, you." I warn

"Why are you guys home?" Sophie asks "I thought you said you wouldn't be back until my sister was born."

"Ha!" Jade scoffs and starts walking towards the living room "Yeah well your sister is apparently on her own schedule."

"What does that mean?"

"Nothing." Jade rolls her eyes "The baby should be here soon."

"Uncle T! Do you want to watch Frozen with me?" Sophie asks, changing the subject altogether

"Ah! Sophie Marie..." Jade stops her "Is your homework done? You have ballet tonight."

"Yes Mom." She groans "I'll be ready when Daddy gets home."

"Daddy isn't going to take you this time." Jade says

"You are?" She asks

"Well, I was going to.,." Trevor smiles "If that's okay with you."

"Yeah!" Sophie cheers "But you'll still watch Frozen with me right?"

"Uhhhh." He hesitates "Sure."

"Will you keep a baby with you, please?" I ask "To make it a little easier on Jade and me?"

"Can Livy watch Frozen too?" Trevor asks our niece

"Sure!" Sophie squeals and goes to turn the TV on

I pick up the boy's car seats and follow Jade into the kitchen

"If I had a dollar for everytime I've seen Frozen..." She laughs "I'd never have to work again."

"I'm pretty sure you could never work again and have enough money left over to send _Sophie's_ kids to college." I remind her

"Oh hush, you know what I meant."

"Do you need any help?" I ask my sister, watching her reach up into the highest cabinet for a bottle of seasoning

"Nope!" She responds once she's grabbed it "I'm good."

"You're sure?"

"Yes, Ruby Kaitlyn." She sighs "I'm sure."

I roll my eyes at the mention of my middle name.

"I saw that!" She exclaims "I had custody of you until you were 21! I can use your middle name if I want to."

"You had custody of me until I was 18." I sneer

"Yeah well you lived in this house until you were 22 so shut up." She reminds me "Chicken or porkchops?"

"Chicken." I say as I pick up a copy of the Australian magazine I was featured in last week that was sitting on the counter "You got one of these?"

"A fan sent it to me." She informs me as she starts cooking the chicken "You mentioned me in your interview."

"Oh yeah." I remember, flipping through the magazine

Aaron starts to whine in his car seat, so I bend down and pick him up bouncing him on my lap.

"Hey bud." I coo

"Hi Aaron!" Jade smiles at him

He grins back to her

"Hi Aunt Jade!" I say in a baby voice

"Awwww, hi!"

"Just think, you'll have another one of these soon." I remind her

"This kid can seriously not come soon enough!" She groans

* * *

><p>"You know, I can't remember the last time I watched this movie." I gesture to the TV screen "Jade?"<p>

I look over to see my sister curled up on the couch next to me, fast asleep.

"JADE!" I yell

She jerks awake and almost falls off the couch, thankfully she doesn't.

"What the hell?" She exclaims, rubbing her eyes

"I was kinda hoping I'd scare you into labor." I admit

"Yeah well, I don't think it worked." She sighs and sits up, turning her attention back to the movie.

"When are the boys going to be back with Sophie?" I ask

"We're back!" Sophie announces as she walks through the door, Trevor and Beck behind her.

"Right now." She sighs

"Sophie, quiet please." I gesture to my three children, asleep in their car seats

"Sorry babies." She whispers to her sleeping cousins "Mommy, we got you ice cream."

"Aw thank you baby." She smiles, taking the ice cream from Sophie and kissing her forehead "Red velvet ice cream? My favorite!"

Beck comes up behind the couch and leans down, kissing the top of Jade's head

"Hey babe?" Trevor says from behind me

"Yeah?" I respond and turn to face him

He smiles and extends an ice cream cup similar to Jade's to me

"Banana ice cream with white chocolate chips and graham crackers?" I smile

He nods

"Thank you babe." I thank him

"Anything for my superstar." He smiles and kisses my cheek


	9. Chapter 9

_Ruby's POV_

"Look at my little avengers!" I coo to the three babies I just finished getting dressed "Happy Halloween babies! This is Auntie Jade's favorite holiday you know."

Trevor insisted we do a family costume this year, and every year until the kids are old enough to protest. However, it's really hard to find creative family halloween costumes for five, especially babies. So we decided on the avengers. Aaron as Iron Man, Jonah as Thor, Olivia as a female Captain America, me as Black Widow and Trevor as...

"Hawkeye's here!" My husband announces bursting into the nursery in his Halloween costume

"Damn babe." I smile, standing up and moving over towards him "You look hot in that uniform."

"You look hotter." He whispers as he wraps his arms around my waist and kisses my neck

"Uh uh." I scold and move away from him "We have to be at Beck and Jade's in thirty minutes and your children are in the room!"

"Whatever." He rolls his eyes "They would've been fine."

"Yeah okay you explain that to them when their older." I laugh as I pick Aaron up, he sneezes "God bless you, Iron Man!"

"He's just the cutest Iron Man!" Trevor coos and plays with our son's hand as I rest him on my hip "Aren't you buddy?"

Aaron smiles, even though he has no idea what his father just said to him. I place him in his car seat and fasten him in, then go to do the same to Olivia, as Trevor is already getting Jonah ready to go.

"Are you ready to have lots of fun tonight, guys?" I ask them

"Hell yeah they are!" Trevor responds

"Hey!" I smack his arm "Stop that! They'll start repeating it soon!"

"They're five months old." He laughs "Let's work on 'mama' and 'dada' first."

"Treebor." I smirk, referencing Sophie's nickname for him when she was first learning to talk and couldn't quite say his name.

"Oobie!" He counters, sticking his tongue out at me.

* * *

><p>"Hiiiiii!" Sophie greets us as she opens the door in her Tinkerbell costume<p>

"Hey Tink!" Trevor exclaims "Trick or Treat!"

"Uncle T! You're silly!" She laughs as we step inside "It's not time to Trick or Treat yet!"

"Well it's almost time!"

"Not until you finish eating!" Jade yells from the kitchen

"Mommy's a loser!" Sophie explains as she goes back to the table to finish her chicken nuggets "She's not dressed up!"

"Well that's because Mommy is nine months pregnant and doesn't want to deal with a costume!" Jade responds "Call me a loser again and your not going trick or treating."

"Are you sure you don't want to come with us?" I ask her

Trevor and I are taking the babies out in their stroller for a while with Beck and Sophie, while Jade stays home to hand out candy.

"If my water is gonna break, I'd prefer it happen in the comfort of my own home rather than the middle of the neighborhood." She explains "Besides, tonight is the one night I can watch The Scissoring and not be judged."

"Do you want me to stay with you?"

"No Aunt Ruby! Come with me! Pleeeease." Sophie begs

"Go with them." Jade laughs "I'll be fine."

"Yo Tinkerbell!" Beck calls as he comes downstairs "Almost ready to go?"

"Yeah!" Sophie cheers and jumps up from the table.

"Peter." Trevor nods, gesturing to Beck's Peter Pan costume to match Sophie's Tinkerbell

"Hawkeye." Beck returns the gesture

"Nice hat."

"Nice boots."

"Touché."

"Hey! I think his costume is sexy!" I defend "He didn't even need the muscle pads."

Trevor flexes to show off his muscles and I squeeze his bicep.

"You been working out?" I giggle

"Only everyday." He laughs

"You guys are disgusting." Jade says

* * *

><p>"Come on Aunt Ruby!" Sophie calls to me "Lets go!"<p>

"Yeah Aunt Ruby!" Beck imitates his daughter's tone

I turn around and stick my tongue out at him as I follow my niece up the front walk of the next house. She rings the doorbell and anxiously awaits the house's owner to come to the door.

"Trick or treat!" She exclaims when a middle aged woman opens the door

"Well hello Tinkerbell!" She smiles as she places a handful of candy into Sophie's pillowcase "Oh hello Ruby!"

"Hi Mrs. Easton!" I wave

Beck and Jade still live in the house we moved into when I was 16, so I know some of the people who live in the gated community. Not all of them are famous, in fact most of them aren't, but they're all rather well-off. Mrs. Easton's husband works for Google and so does one of her sons.

"Still taking the music industry by storm?" She asks

"You could say that." I blush

"Aunt Rubyyyyy." Sophie groans, pulling at my hand "I wanna go get more candy!"

"Well I don't want to get in the way of anyone's Halloween fun!" She gasps "You take care, Ruby. Keep working hard!"

"Thanks Mrs. Easton. I will!" I smile as Sophie grabs my hand and starts pulling me towards the driveway, and back to Trevor, Beck and the babies.

"I think we should head back soon." Trevor tells me "Captain America is fast asleep and Thor and Iron Man are going to be joining her shortly."

"No! I wanna keep Trick-Or-Treating!" Sophie begs "Please! It's Friday! There's no school tomorrow!"

"Soph, I don't know..." Beck sighs

"What if I take the babies back and you guys stay out with her?" I suggest

"I honestly don't know how much longer I can stay out here in this costume." Beck admits "There's no sleeves on it and it's getting cooler."

"What if we all walk back to the house, we change into real clothes and then take her back out again?" Trevor compromises

Beck nods and we begin the walk back to Beck and Jade's house. I see a paparazzi dip hidden behind a house snap a picture of us. Oh well, I knew some would sneak in, even if it _is_ a gated community.

When we arrive, I explain the situation to Jade as Beck runs upstairs to change and Trevor goes to get his change of clothes from the car. Jade insists that Sophie puts a long sleeved shirt on under her costume to keep her warm, and the little girl reluctantly obeys her mother.

After the guys leave with Sophie, Jade helps me change the babies into their matching "My First Halloween" pajamas,(Aaron's are black, Jonah's are orange, and Olivia's are purple) and place them in their car seats to sleep, each covered in a blanket. Then I change into _my_ pajamas. Which basically consist of a pair of flannel pants and one of Trevor's old Hollywood Arts sweatshirts.

"How long do you think they'll stay out?" I ask

"Knowing Sophie," She sighs "They'll be back in 45 minutes to an hour and a half and Beck will have to carry her to bed."

"I remember when we used to get that excited about trick-or-treating." I laugh

"Yeah." She chuckles "John would take us, we'd stay out until nine, and Mom would always have hot chocolate waiting for us when we got home."

"Those were the days." I smile over at my three babies, all peacefully sleeping

"Yeah." She agrees "Those were the days."


	10. Chapter 10

**Author's Note: please DO NOT go looking for these twitter accounts. THEY DO NOT EXIST. _I made them up_ for the purpose of this story.**

* * *

><p>Twitter Update from <strong>RubyKaitlyn<strong>:

_Hey everyone! Be sure to check out my livestream today at 6:00 PDT! **Jade_Oliver95 **and I will be answering YOUR questions! So send em in_! #_askjadeandruby_

* * *

><p><em>Ruby's POV<em>

"Hello world!" I smile at the camera "Can everybody hear me?"

I check the #askjadeandruby tag for responses.

_Yup!_

_Hi Ruby!_

_Can hear you loud and clear!_

"Awesome!" I say "We're just going to wait a second for Jade, she's on her way upstairs."

"Chill your asses!" Jade says as she enters the room with a bowl of popcorn "I'm here!"

"Careful! You don't know how old some of them are!" I exclaim as she sits down next to me

"Public Service Announcement: If you're old enough to have a twitter, you're old enough to hear me swear." she says flatly "And if you're one of those seven year olds lying about your age just to get a twitter and be 'cool', shame on you."

"Jade Oliver, ladies and gentlemen!" I laugh

"Sorry," she says taking a handful of popcorn "I'll get off my soapbox now. Let's answer some questions."

"You wanna pick the first one?" I ask

"Why not?" She shrugs and starts scrolling through the feed "Oh here we're gonna do this one just to get it out of the way. '_Logan Michelle is a beautiful name, why did you choose it?_'. You're right, it is a beautiful name, and we originally chose it because both Beck and I absolutely loved it. However, in the past few weeks I have come to not love it so much. So her name more than likely will not be Logan, but Beck and I have found a new one we love even more. But this time, we won't tell Sophie so there's no chances if her announcing it to the whole world via internet. And don't ask me to tell you what it is, because I won't."

"She won't even tell me." I add

It's true and I'm only _slightly_ pissed off.

"Oh stop. You'll find out soon enough." She laughs "If this kid ever decides to come out!"

"Jade was due three days ago." I inform my viewers "She's a little cranky."

"Whatever." She rolls her eyes "Pick a question."

"_How have you been spending your time off from touring_?" I read "Well, I've been sleeping a lot. Because I don't care who you are, two weeks of straight touring will exhaust you. By the way, we did that so I'd be home when Jade has her baby, but it looks like we could've extended it a week and had some rest time. But that's okay. Uhhm, I've been spending time with Trevor and the babies. We come over here a lot to hang out with Beck, Jade, and Sophie. Soooo yeah. Down time is good."

"Hear that junior?" Jade says to her baby bump "Aunt Ruby busted her ass so she could be here to meet you and you've decided to just hang around in there."

"Pick another question." I laugh "She'll just wanna stay in there longer if you yell at her."

"Whatever. Let's see, oh! They want to know where we went on our honeymoons." She exclaims "Well, I didn't get my honeymoon right away. Because the day after Beck and I got married, my water broke, and then Sophie was born extremely early the next morning. So yeah, the next year for my birthday and our anniversary, Beck took me to Cancun. So Cancun. That's where I went."

"I don't have any fun stories like that with mine, but we went to Greece." I laugh. "It was beautiful. I had such an amazing time, and because if touring I get to go back every once and a while. Trevor and I always make a point of going to the same restaurant as we did the first night we were there. I seriously hope it never moves because I can never remember the name, just where it is. Okay next question..."

"Here's another wedding one," Jade tells me "Wow you guys like wedding questions there's like three in a row here, let's do this one first, _what color were your bridesmaid dresses_? Mine were navy blue and black."

"Mine were light pink and white." I say "Polar opposites."

"Polar opposites." Jade agrees "Our weddings in general were polar opposites. Mine was small, like really small. Her's wasn't huge, but it was decent sized. Her's was in a church, mine...well let's just say mine wasn't. Her reception was a giant party, literally, it was SO much fun, but I kept mine small."

"And for those of you wondering, yes! I did make Jade wear a pink bridesmaid dress!"

"She's so proud of herself for that." Jade scoffs "I'll do anything for this girl right here. If she had wanted the bridesmaids in gorilla suits, then I would've worn one."

"Thanks big sis." I smile

"You're welcome, baby sis." She laughs "Read the next one there."

"_What was your first dance at your wedding_?" I read "'Then', by Brad Paisley. I love that song."

"Overjoyed by Matchbox Twenty." Jade answers "I'm pretty sure Ruby came up with that one."

"No, Tori did." I correct her "I wanted you to use a country song."

"Right." she laughs "Obviously my sister and I have very different music tastes."

"Very different." I agree "_What was your favorite book you read in school_? Hm, I think I'd have to go with The Great Gatsby. What about you?"

"To Kill a Mockingbird." Jade answers "Still my favorite book."

"Wait wait wait, look at this one." I laugh "_Where are the kids right now? It seems awful quiet_!"

"Their daddies are watching them." Jade smiles "Because their mommies needed some girl time."

"Some very much needed, well deserved girl time."


	11. Chapter 11

_Ruby's POV_

"I can't believe you talked me into watching this movie...again." Trevor sighs as we lay in bed, watching Hitch, one of my favorite movies.

"You like this movie." I remind him

I don't think either one of us will make it to the end to be honest. It's only 9:00 and I already have my head resting on his chest, and my eyes feel heavy.

"I know. But we watch it all the time."

"Well then lets pick another one." I suggest

"Nah." He shakes his head "'cause then one of us has to get up and change it. I don't want to and I know you don't either, so let's just watch it."

"Alright." I laugh

We watch in silence for a while, until Trevor's phone starts vibrating on the bedside table.

"Hello?" He answers groggily "Oh! Hey what's up?"

"Who is it?" I ask

He presses a finger to my lips to tell me to stop talking to he can listen.

"What? A baby swap? Oh!" He jumps up "Shit! I mean! Yeah that's fine bring her over! I'll tell Ruby! Yeah. Yeah. Okay. See you soon! Okay. Bye."

"Who was that?" I ask when he hangs up the phone

"Beck." He tells me "They're bringing Sophie over."

"What? Why?"

He shoots me a look that reads 'you know exactly why'.

"Jade's water broke?" I ask

He nods

"Well why didn't you just say that!" I exclaim and jump up to get dressed.

I'm not going to the hospital in my pajamas, but I'm certainly not dressing up either. Let's see, what to wear, what to wear? Leggings, an oversized sweater, and combat boots it is.

"Are you going to be okay with four kids by yourself?" I ask Trevor as I start throwing things into my purse.

Phone. Phone charger. Eos egg. Movies...Rent, Les Miserables, Hairspray, Mr. And Mrs. Smith, Pitch Perfect. A deck of cards. Am I missing anything?

"Yeah I'll be fine." He assures me "They'll be asleep most of the time anyway."

"I know, but what happens when they wake up?"

"Sophie loves her cousins." He reminds me "She'll be more than happy to help me out."

"Okay." I sigh "Wait! Trev! Pick a number one through ten!"

"Um...eight?" He says confused as we make our way downstairs "Why?"

I go into the living room and grab the season eight Friends box set from underneath the entertainment center.

"Heaven forbid we forget the Friends DVD's!" He gasps as the doorbell rings "Shit!"

"Please don't wake the babies." I pray out loud as Trevor opens the door

"Sorry." Beck apologizes as he steps inside, carrying Sophie who's half asleep "I forgot."

"I think they slept through it." Trevor tells him as Beck passes Sophie to him along with her bag "Hey Soph."

"Hi Uncle T..." She yawns

"Is Jade in the car?" I ask Beck as I zip my coat up

He nods.

"Okay. Bye babe." I kiss Trevor "Bye Sophie."

"Bye." Trevor whispers

"Behave." I tell him "Both of you."

"Okay." He laughs as I walk outside, down the front walk, and towards Beck and Jade's car sitting in my driveway.

"Hey." I say as I climb into the backseat behind Jade "How ya doin?"

"About as good as I can be, I guess." She responds "Was Sophie okay?"

"I think she is." I tell her "She's half asleep anyways."

"Good. I'd feel guilty if she was upset or anything. I mean I feel guilty anyway bu- AHH!" She cringes

"Hey. Hey!" I extend my hand forward towards her so she can grab it, which she does "You're okay."

"I'll be even better if Beck moves his ass and gets out here!"

* * *

><p>"I refuse to watch that!" Beck insists<p>

"But Zac Efron!" I argue

"Exactly!" he exclaims "You only want to watch it because he's in it!"

"I think you're going to lose, Beck." Jade sighs from her hospital bed "She's pretty persistent."

"Cat and Tori will back me up when they get here!" I tell him

"What will we back you up on?" Cat asks as she enters the room, followed by Tori

"We should watch Hairspray." I tell them "Because Zac Efron."

"No we shouldn't!" Beck argues

"Hmmm, I don't know. What's the other option?" Tori asks

"Why don't we just watch Friends?" Jade suggests "Then everyone will be happy and Beck and Ruby will stop arguing."

"Fine." I sigh and put Hairspray back in my purse and take Friends out instead

"Is that all we missed?" Cat laughs

"Pretty much." Jade sighs "I'm six centimeters."

"At least this one is moving faster than Sophie was." Tori reminds her

"Thank god!" Jade exclaims "I don't know if I could do another twelve hour labor."

* * *

><p>"Come on Jade!" Beck encourages "You can do it! I know you can!"<p>

"I'm going to kill you!" She grimaces

"Thats fine!" He laughs "Just keep pushing!"

"Come on Jade." I whisper to her "You're almost there!"

"Yeah okay kid let me tell you how spoiled you were!" She exclaims

I had to have a C-Section. Oh well. I won't complain.

"I know." I smile "But you're almost there! Stop worrying about me and push!"

I wasn't in the room when Sophie was born, I wasn't old enough. So the first labor I experienced was my own with the triplets, which was a C-Section. So I've never really been in this situation before. Tori hasn't either, because she stayed in the waiting room with me, then again, she's also had her own baby. Anyway, lucky for us, Beck seems to have it under control for the most part.

"Come on Jade! Shes crowing! One more big push!" The doctor orders

Jade squeezes my hand so hard I think she might break it, but I'm distracted from the pain by the baby's cries that fill the room.

"She's here!" Beck smiles and kisses the top of Jade's head "I'm so proud of you."

The doctor places the screaming baby on Jade's chest and she begins to cry. I exchange a look with Cat and Tori and we all seem to be on the same page.

"We'll give you some privacy." I tell Beck and turn to go

"Wait," Jade grabs my hand "Thank you."

"You're Welcome." I smile

Cat, Tori and I exit the room and start walking down the hallway toward the cafeteria to find coffee or something of the sort.

"Is the cafeteria on the ground floor or in the basement?" Tori asks as we step onto the elevator "I can't remember."

"Me either." Cat admits

"Just try the ground floor first and if that's not there we'll go to the basement." I suggest and hit the 'G' button.

We travel down the seven floors to the lobby area, however, when we step off the elevator, we're met by an eruption of flashbulbs and yelling.

"DID JADE HAVE THE BABY?" A paparazzi yells

"WHAT DID THEY NAME HER?"

"GIRLS COME ON TELL US SOMETHING!"

"Back on the elevator!" Tori yells and begins desperately pressing the 'up' button on the wall.

The doors finally open and we rush inside hitting the button to close the doors over and over until they finally shut and we begin moving upwards again.

"That _definitely_ didn't happen when Sophie was born."

"Maybe the nurses station has some coffee."

* * *

><p>"Hey guys." Beck says entering the waiting room "Wanna come meet the newest addition?"<p>

I smile and get up, following him down the hallway, Cat and Tori behind me.

"Hi guys." Jade smiles when we enter the room.

"Hiiiii." Cat whispers

We all gather around the bed, admiring the sleeping baby girl that Jade is holding.

She's a tiny thing. Smaller than Sophie was, but bigger than my kids were, who were premature. They probably miscalculated her due date. If I has to guess I'd say she's around six pounds. She's wearing a hat, but the little hair I can see sticking out from under it is light brown. Lighter than Jade and Sophie's, certainly lighter than Beck's, but darker than mine. Jade says she doesn't have a whole lot of it either.

"What's her name?" Tori finally asks.

"Violet." Jade smiles "Violet Kaitlyn Oliver."

"Kaitlyn?" I smile

She nods

"Really?" I gasp

"Check her birth certificate if you don't believe me." Jade laughs and gestures for Beck to hand it to me

_**Violet Kaitlyn Oliver**_

_**Sex: Female **_

_**6 lbs. 2 oz.**_

_**18 inches long**_

_**Born: November 5th, 2022**_

_**12:48 A.M.**_

_**To Parents:**_

_**Beck and Jade Oliver**_

_**Los Angeles, California**_

"Oh my gosh." I gasp

"Ruby." Beck says "We were wondering..."

"Yeah?"

"Would you and Trevor be her godparents?" Jade asks

"Of course." I smile "We'd be honored."


	12. Chapter 12

_Ruby's POV_

"Listen to me, Sophie Marie." I tell my oldest niece as I kneel down to be closer in height to her "You listen to Mommy and Daddy, okay? And be a good big sister. Trust me, I'm a little sister. We need good big sisters to look up to. You understand?"

She nods.

"Alright." I kiss her forehead and stand up "I love you."

"I love you too, Aunt Ruby." She hugs me, then leaves to say goodbye to Trevor

"You'll be there for MSG right?" I ask Jade, who's pushing Violet back and forth in her stroller

"I wouldn't miss it for the world." She smiles

"I love you." I hug her

"I love you too." She tells me "Be careful okay? Keep me updated."

"Okay." I nod and bend down to say goodbye to Violet "Hey Violet. Thanks for making your appearance before I had to leave again. Be good for Mommy, alright?"

The newborn baby yawns and waves her arms around in space.

"I'll take that as a sign of understanding." I chuckle and kiss the top if her head.

"Rube. Come on we gotta go." Trevor calls to me

"Bye." I wave to Jade and the girls, Beck is at work. "I'll call you later tonight."

"Bye!" Sophie yells as I pick up the third baby seat and jog to catch up to Trevor who has already started walking towards the jet.

"So has your sister been okay?" Trevor asks as we board the plane

"What do you mean?"

"You know...with the baby being born and everything?"

"She's had a baby before, Trev." I say as I start buckling Aaron's car seat in.

"Well yeah I know." He sighs as he buckles another seat in "But that whole thing that happened the summer between Sophomore and Junior year..."

"What?"

"When Beck was working on that movie?"

"Trevor. I'm not a mind reader, you need to help me out here."

"Come on babe, please don't make me say it." He sighs "That day we were playing in the sprinkler with Sophie, and Jade told us to get off each other and stop being cute and then _he_ showed up and..."

"Shit. No yeah okay." I say once I remember what he's talking about.

The miscarriage. Or technically you could say stillborn. I'm not actually sure...

When my dad attacked her and she lost the baby. My nephew Jonathan, named after my stepdad and half-brother.

"She hasn't mentioned anything of she's been thinking about it." I tell him "I'll...I'll be sure I ask her about it when I get a chance to talk to her."

"Aw babe." Trevor pulls me into a hug "I'm sorry I brought it up. I know it still scares you."

"No it's okay." I mutter into his chest "Thanks for caring."

"Always." He whispers.

* * *

><p>I'm sitting in my room doing homework. Why am I doing homework? I'm 24...<p>

I stand up and look around at where I am. I'm in my bedroom... at the first house Beck and Jade bought when Jade was still pregnant with Sophie.

"Hello?" I call

Nobody answers.

Why am I here? How did I get here? What's going on?

"Hello, Ruby." A chillingly familiar voice says from behind me

Shit, no this can't be happening.

"What do you want?" I spit at him as I turn around.

"Still thing your sister is god herself?" He scoffs as he picks at his nails "It hurts me, baby girl."

"She takes better care of me than you ever did!" I exclaim

"Really?" He asks "No she doesn't. Stop lying to yourself."

"Maybe you should stop lying!" I counter "God I hate you!"

He stands up and before I can react, his fist connects with my face.

"HELP!" I scream "SOMEONE HELP ME!"

"No one can hear you, Ruby!" He laughs and hits me again

"You drunk bastard!" I cry and try to push him off of me

"Shhh, stop squirming. I am your father! Listen to me!"

I continue to kick and scream, but i just can't shake him. He lifts me up and throws me over his shoulder, carrying me out of the room.

"Ruby Kaitlyn!" He scolds "I'm only trying to help you. That slut and her burnout boyfriend are not capable of raising a baby, let alone a bratty teenager like you."

I continue to kick and punch and bite, but nothing works. He doesn't even flinch, he's almost...immortal.

"OH MY GOD HELP!" I cry "GOD PLEASE SOMEBODY HELP ME!"

"No one can hear you." He sighs, annoyed

"JADE! BECK!" I scream "TREVOR! PLEASE! SOMEONE! ANYONE!"

"Ruby!" A voice calls somewhere off in the distance

"HELP!" I cry to them

"Ruby!" It calls again, this time a little louder

"YES IM HERE! PLEASE HELP ME!"

"RUBY!" Trevor screams

I jolt awake and shoot upright, straight into his arms, and begin to sob hysterically.

"Shhh it's okay. I'm here." he whispers and rubs my back "You're okay. You're safe."

"He...tried...to take...me." I sob

"Shhh, baby it wasn't real." He reminds me "You're here with me and the babies. We're on tour right now, we're in Miami. Beck and Jade are safe at home in Los Angeles with Sophie and Violet. Your Dad is dead, he can't hurt you anymore. It was just a dream, you're safe."

I continue to cry into his chest for a good ten minutes or so, when I run out of tears. Then I just kind of sit there, and Trevor continues to hold me. Eventually I drift back off into a light, dreamless, sleep.


	13. Chapter 13

_Ruby's POV_

"Has anybody seen my phone?" I ask as I frantically rush around the tour bus looking for my cellular device

"You just had it fifteen minutes ago." Trevor laughs from his spot on the bed

"Yeah I know I did!" I snap "Uhg, Livy! Give Mommy her phone back!"

I bend down to take the white PearPhone from my daughter, just as it starts to ring. She jumps because the noise startles her at first, but she smiles when she sees Aunt Jade's picture pop up on the screen.

"Hello?" I answer once the phone is back in my possession

"Hey." Jade says "You have time to talk?"

"Uh sure." I shrug "We're on the bus."

"Atlanta tonight right?" She asks

"Raleigh." I correct her "Atlanta was last night."

"Oh. I must've missed a day." She laughs

"Yeah." I hear Violet start whining in the background "Is everything okay? Why'd you call?"

"Trevor told me you had an episode a few nights ago." She tells me, her voice suddenly becoming more serious "Are you okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine." I assure her "Its just, it got mentioned during the day that day and I guess I couldn't push it away."

"How did it get brought up?" She asks

"Trevor asked if you we're doing okay with the new baby and everything because of...because of Jonathan." I say

"Jesus." She breathes "Tell him I'm fine. It upset me at first, but I know he's better off where he is and Violet is better off here where she is."

"That's what I figured you'd say." I admit

No way she'd admit if it was still bothering her. Not Jade.

"So you're okay now?" She asks

"Ouch! Aaron Trevor!" I hear Trevor exclaim

I look over to see my husband holding our oldest son on his lap, the baby pulling on his hair. And I can't help but laugh. Jonah and Olivia play peacefully on the floor, and it puts me at ease.

"Yeah." I smile "I'm okay now."

* * *

><p>"Hello Raleigh!" I greet the crowd at the PNC Arena later that night "How is everybody doing on this fine evening?"<p>

The crowd cheers back in response.

"I can't hear yooooou." I tease them

They cheer louder.

"Yeah that's it North Carolina!" I laugh "Aw this is awesome!"

"Hey Rube!" Trevor exclaims "Didn't you used to listen to that song back in high school about Raleigh?"

"What?" I ask him

"You know..._I made it down the coast in seventeen hours, Picking me a bouquet of dogwood flowers, And I'm a-hopin' for **Raleigh**, I can see my baby tonig__ht_" he sings

"_So rock me momma like a wagon wheel, Rock me momma any way you feel, Hey momma rock me, Rock me momma like the wind and the rain, Rock me momma like a south bound train,Hey momma ro__ck me_" I join in and sing with him, and we get a great crowd reaction "Do you guys know that song?"

They just cheer, so I don't know what that means, but they seem pleased with us.

"Darius Rucker, right?" Trevor asks me

"Well yeah he redid it." I say "But Bob Dylan wrote it and released it first."

"Really?" He asks as the crowd cheers again, presumably for the mention of Bob Dylan, but they cheer for just about anything

"Really." I nod "Alright, let's do some shout-outs!"

The band starts to play as I pull my phone out and bring up the list of shout-outs I've selected from tonight's audience.

"Melissa and Erica, section 334! Hello up there! Thanks for coming!" I smile "Erin and Rachel, section 204! Hi! How are ya?"

I can see section 204 from where I am on stage, so I can see the two very excited teenage girls start jumping up and down when I mention them. That honestly, is one do the best parts of this job. The fans.

"Hey Olivia, hey that's my daughter's name! Haha Olivia, section 226! Happy 17th Birthday!" I cheer "Oh another birthday, Mikey, section 302! Happy...26th birthday!"

"Nice dude." Trevor laughs into the microphone

"Hey we love fans of all types here!" I exclaim "Alright, this one is my favorite, so I saved it for last. Savannah! Section 129!"

I stop and point in the general direction of section 129.

"Yes that's right, you Savannah!" I chuckle "Liam would like to know if you'd marry him?"

I can't see section 129 all that well, because its all the way in the back of the arena, but based on the crowd's reaction, I'm assuming she said yes.

"Did she say yes?" I ask

The crowd cheers

"She did?" I confirm "Okay, hey Max? Can we get them up on stage please?"

"Yeah sure." The head of security yells to me as he and a few arena security guards disappear to retrieve the couple.

"Okay while we wait for them, we'll do two more..." I say "Okay. Luke and Katie, section 220! Are you having fun? Yeah? Okay good! Hazel and Elena! Section 323! Waaaaay up in the nosebleeds! Thanks for coming you guys, you're the best kind of fan!"

"Ruby!" Max calls

I turn to see him standing next to a very nervous looking couple. I wave them onstage, they look to be about my age.

"Everybody give it up for Savannah and Liam!" I cheer "Congratulations you guys!"

I give Savannah a hug and she's literally shaking.

"What's wrong?" I ask her

"This is insane!" She tells me as a stagehand brings out two stools for them to sit on "What's going on?"

We informed Liam ahead of time that we had selected his shout-out to be read onstage tonight so he wouldn't ask her before it was time. But we _didn't_ tell him about _this_.

"I'm gonna sing for you guys!" I laugh "If you're okay with that?"

She nods and smiles

"Okay band, remember what we talked about before show time!" I smile "Now this song _isn't_ mine, but of you know the words, feel free to sing along!"

Savannah looks like she could burst out into tears at any moment.

"_Heart beats fast_

_Colors and promises_

_How to be brave?_

_How can I love when I'm afraid to fall?_

_But watching you stand alone,_

_All of my doubt suddenly goes away somehow._

_One step closer_

_I have died every day waiting for you_

_Darling, don't be afraid I have loved you_

_For a thousand years_

_I'll love you for a thousand more..._."


	14. Chapter 14

_Ruby's POV_

"Oh my gosh!" I squeal and practically run off the bus and through the open door to the arena

Well I run about as fast as someone carrying a baby seat can.

"Rube! Calm down!" Trevor calls as he jogs after me carrying the other two babies

"Calm down?" I exclaim "Trevor, this is the Bridgestone Arena! We're in Nashville!"

My husband has never been as big of a country music fan as I am. He certainly likes it, because he would and still does listen to it, but only with me, and he only has a few select songs on his PearPod, most of which are my songs that are country enough to fit into the genre. Me on the other hand, I'm a fangirl. A _major_ fangirl.

"It's just another show." He laughs

"_Just_ another show?" I scoff as security leads us down a series of hallways to the dressing rooms "Trev, they have the CMA Awards here! And the CMA Music Festival! And there's been a Grammy nominations concert!"

"Are you forgetting you're playing Madison Square Garden in a few weeks, babe?" He reminds me

"Woah! One fangirl attack at a time please!" I laugh as I enter my dressing room and set the car seat down

"Yeah yeah whatever." He rolls his eyes and sets the other carseats down "I'm gonna go help unload the instruments. Julia should be in soon."

"Okay." I kiss his cheek, and then he leaves

I throw my purse down on one of the chairs and pull out my phone, opening up the twitter app.

**RubyKaitlyn**: _Soooo excited to be in Nashville! Should I wear my cowboy boots on stage tonight?_

"So are you having a heart attack?" Julia asks as she appears at the door, if you can call it a door.

The whole dressing room is basically a giant curtained area with some furniture and a vanity.

"Just a tiny one." I giggle "This is so cool! Can you imagine who has been in here before us?"

"Girl it's no different than any other arena you've played. Every other one has had different artists in it before you!" She laughs and bends down to take Jonah out of his car seat "Hey little man!"

"I know it's just so..." I'm interrupted by an alert from my phone telling me someone has responded to my tweet

**Jade_Oliver95**: RubyKaitlyn break a leg, my little redneck!

I chuckle at the inside joke between my sister and I.

"What?" Julia laughs "Something I said?"

"No." I smirk "Just...Jade."

Another alert.

**Jade_Oliver95**: _RubyKaitlyn P.S. Sophie says she wants a pair of cowboy boots like Aunt Ruby's..._

* * *

><p>"Nashville! You have no idea how excited I am to be here!" I announce to the crowd later that night<p>

"You seriously don't..." Trevor laughs from behind me

"Oh stop it you." I tease "He just doesn't get it."

The crowd cheers, which I'll consider as them siding with me.

"You guys wanna know what I did today?" I ask

They cheer.

"I went shopping and bought all three of my babies pairs of cowboy boots!"

The crowd swoons as a picture of the babies sitting in their carseats wearing little mini cowboy boots appears on the giant screen behind me, as well as the two above the stage off to the left and right.

"As much as Trevor won't what to admit it, he enjoyed himself too!" I laugh as the picture of the babies disappears and a picture of Trevor, wearing a hot pink sparkly cowboy hat, replaces it.

"I think I look pretty cute..." He shrugs

* * *

><p>"Goodnight babies." I whisper and lean down and kiss each of their foreheads as they lay sleeping in their pac-n-plays "Mommy loves you."<p>

"You're sure you don't mind staying with them?" Trevor asks Julia and Zach "If you want to go out, we can find someone else."

"Dude, it's fine." Zach assures him "They're asleep."

"And if they wake up, it'll be a test to see if Zach is Daddy material." Julia whispers to me, and we both laugh.

"Alright! We'll be back around two...or maybe three...It's fine if you fall asleep. Just please don't have sex in my bed or near my kids please." Trevor tells them "Okay. Come on babe."

I follow Trevor out of the bus and into the night, as we start walking towards the downtown area.

"Not so fast Mr. and Mrs. Samuels!" Max calls out as he jogs to catch up with us, along with a few other members of our security team "You didn't think we we're gonna let you go out and have all the fun, now did you?"

"Max. For the last time." I groan "You don't have to follow me _everywhere_!"

"It's my job to make sure you're safe at all times!" He reminds me "Even at 11:30 at night!"

I just roll my eyes and continue walking hand-in-hand with Trevor, the security team trailing behind us.

We don't get all that far before we find a little honky-tonk bar and walk in. Music is blaring and there's people from wall to wall. There's a little dance floor in the middle, I grab Trevor's hand and pull him towards it, before I know it, we're surrounded by people again, dancing away.

I haven't danced like this since before I was pregnant. It would be rather hard to grind on someone with a triplet baby-bump in the way after all. I feel young and stupid, like I'm back in high school again.

"THIS IS SO MUCH FUN!" I yell to Trevor over the music

"I KNOW!" He yells back

We dance and dance, we don't even take a break until about one, when we go to the bar for a few drinks. We meet a few girls who certainly do not look old enough to be in a bar, who had come here straight from my show. I take a few pictures with them, and sign one of their phone cases, the other one's cowboy hat.

Never in my wildest dreams did I ever imagine someone would be begging _me_ for _my_ autograph.

Around twoish, the DJ starts to play slower songs, not that I mind, in fact he's playing some of my favorites. Others however, don't seem to enjoy it as much and the bar starts to empty out.

"Ready to go?" Trevor asks as we sway back and forth to the music, his arms around my waist, and mine around his neck

"Yeah I guess maybe we shou-" I'm cut off when a familiar melody fills the room, along with it's matching lyrics...

"_I remember trying not to stare_

_The night that I first met you_

_You had me mezmorized_

_And three weeks later_

_In the front porch light_

_Taking 45 minutes to kiss goodnight_

_I hadn't told you yet_

_I thought I loved y__ou then._.."

"Let's stay for the end of this one..." I tell him

"Of course." He smiles as he leans down and kisses me "How could we not?"


	15. Chapter 15

**Author's Note: we're skipping ahead a couple weeks so I can avoid writers block, this chapter takes place around the first or second week of December.**

* * *

><p><em>Ruby's POV<em>

"Mic check one two, one two." I say into the microphone

"We're good!" I hear one of the sound guys say "Thanks Ruby!"

I give him the thumbs up and then start moving around the stage, trying to familiarize myself with the new, temporary layout. Tonight is not a show that you'd want to mess up.

Tonight, is Madison Square Garden. And we're completely sold out.

Everything is bigger and better tonight. Bigger stage, bigger screens, the best outfits, even the set list has been slightly altered. And I'm nervous.

Sure, I played in New York on my last tour, but we were at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, not here. Not in 'The World's Most Famous Arena'.

"Okay! Does anybody have any questions?" The tour manager asks "Ruby! You good?"

Besides the fact I feel like throwing up?

"Yeah!" I smile "I'm good."

"Okay! Gates open at 5:30! Opener goes on at 7:30 and Ruby is up at 9!" He tells us "So everybody get some rest, we've got the biggest show of the tour tonight!"

Everyone who was on the stage or around it begins to disperse. Trevor comes up behind me and picks me up, spinning me around. I scream.

"Calm down." He laughs and kisses my cheek "It's just little old me."

"Oh stop it you." I smile and take his hand, leading him into the floor seats in front of the stage to retrieve the babies from Julia.

"Hey babies!" I coo as I pick Aaron up and start putting him into the stroller so we can move backstage easier "Did you see Mommy on stage?"

"Isn't Mommy awesome?" Trevor asks as he pulls Olivia into lap "I know she is. That's why I married her."

"You're pathetic." I smirk

"There's my superstar!" A voice says

I turn around to see none other than Andre Harris, head of my record label and part-time manager walking towards us.

"Andre!" I exclaim and move to greet him "What are you doing here?"

"I was in town." He hugs me "Decided it might be a good night to check out America's latest pop superstar."

"Are you coming to the show tonight?" Trevor asks from behind me

"You bet!" He laughs "I wouldn't miss MSG!"

"No pressure or anything." I laugh "Having my boss here."

"Hey, I told you not to think of me as your boss!" he reminds me "I'm just one of your sister's friends."

"Speaking of that..." Trevor says appearing next to me "Check this out..."

He hands me his phone and he has his Twitter pulled up. Jade posted a picture of the two of us probably around ages seven and ten. We're wearing feather boas and star shaped plastic sunglasses, holding toy microphones in the living room of the apartment we lived in between my mom divorcing my dad and marrying John. The tweet attached to it reads:

**Jade_Oliver95**: _Can't believe I get to watch this little goober play MSG tonight! So proud of you **RubyKaitlyn**! Can't wait to see you! #proudsister_

* * *

><p>"Anything?" I ask<p>

"Not since I checked two I minutes ago, dearest." Trevor sighs

The babies fell asleep while we were still in my dressing room after soundcheck, and not wanting to wake them, we decided to stay here for a while instead of moving to the tour bus. I'm anxiously awaiting my sister's arrival, but there's been no updates on her flight recently, so her ETA is still undetermined.

Trevor sits on the couch opposite from me, strumming the occasional note on his acoustic guitar. It's how he relaxes. I sit on the other couch, watching The Hunger Games on my PearPad.

"What about now?" I ask again

"Look Ruby when I get an update I'll let you kn-"

Theres a knock at the door.

"Oh my god!" A familiar voice shrieks "It's Ruby Samuels!"

"JADE!" I exclaim and jump up, running over to her and practically knocking her over. "You're here!"

"I am." She hugs me "Jeez kid, I haven't seen you that excited to see me since you were like fourteen."

"I'm so nervous." I admit "I get like this when I'm nervous."

"Believe me, I know." She laughs moving in to the dressing room and setting her purse down "Hi Trevor."

"Hey."

"Where are the kids?" She asks

"Over there." I point to the triplets, asleep in their stroller "Where are yours?"

"Well one is at school and the other is way to little to be at a huge concert." She reminds me "You've known all along I was the only one coming."

"Right. Sorry." I sigh

"Hey." She rests a hand on my shoulder "Calm down, kiddo. It's just another concert."

"Right." I repeat "Just another concert."

* * *

><p>"Wow! This crowd is amazing!" I smile into the microphone as I walk down the catwalk towards the end of the stage.<p>

Stagehands are already up there, setting up a stool and a micstand for me.

"Is everybody having a good time?" I ask

The crowd roars as I sit down on the stool, and take my acoustic guitar from one of the stagehands.

My guitar was a 20th birthday present from Trevor, and he promised he'd teach me to play. Which he did. It's body is baby blue, the neck made of maple wood, with white and silver accents and plating. This thing was my baby before I had my actual babies.

I slip the strap around my body and begin tuning it as I talk.

"So tonight is a very special show. And I thought that it called for a very special song." I say "I didn't write it, I wish I had. It's very special to me, the first time I ever performed in front of an audience, this is the song I sang. It was the first time I ever considered _maybe I could do this_. If you know the words sing along. And if you have a flashlight on your phone, I want you to hold it in the air right now."

The arena is full of thousands of phone lights as I begin to sing and play

"_When I find myself in times of trouble_

_Mother Mary comes to me_

_Speaking words of wisdom, let it be_

_And in my hour of darkness_

_She is standing right in front of me_

_Speaking words of wisdom, let it be_

_Let it be, let it be_

_Let it be, let it be_

_Whisper words of wisdom, let it be_

_And when the broken hearted people_

_Living in the world agree_

_There will be an answer, let it be_

_For though they may be parted_

_There is still a chance that they will see_

_There will be an answer, let it be_

_Let it be, let it be_

_Let it be, let it be_

_Yeah there will be an answer, let it be_

_Let it be, let it be_

_Let it be, let it be_

_Whisper words of wisdom, let it be_

_Let it be, let it be_

_Ah let it be, yeah let it be_

_Whisper words of wisdom, let it be_

_And when the night is cloudy_

_There is still a light that shines on me_

_Shine on until tomorrow, let it be_

_I wake up to the sound of music,_

_Mother Mary comes to me_

_Speaking words of wisdom, let it be_

_Yeah let it be, let it be_

_Let it be, yeah let it be_

_Oh there will be an answer, let it be_

_Let it be, let it be_

_Let it be, yeah let it be_

_Oh there will be an answer, let it be_

_Let it be, let it be_

_Ah let it be, yeah let it be_

_Whisper words of wisdom, let it be_"

* * *

><p><em>Jade's POV<em>

I stare up at my little sister as she sings, I couldn't be more proud.

Ruby, _my baby sister,_ is preforming in Madison. Square. Garden. And I have the best seat in the house. Front row of the pit, only real VIPs are allowed in here.

I watch her as she sings Let It Be, towards the end of the song her voice starts to shake and a tear rolls down her cheek. I can't tell if it's because she's emotional, or if she's thinking back to the night she first sang this song...

_"Beck can you drive any faster?" I ask._

_"Not if you don't want to get arrested."_

_"She's probably bleeding to death!"_

_"Jade, hun, calm down. We'll be home soon okay?"_

_I sigh. I'm scared out of my mind. I heard my dad through Ruby's phone call, he could've killed her, I don't know, I wasn't there. I hate myself for not being there. Maybe I could've done something._

_Beck pulls into the driveway and I hop out before the car is even off. I run (well waddle I guess) into the RV to see my baby sister lying in the floor covered in blood clutching her side._

_"Ruby."_

_"Jade. Help."_

I wince at the thought. A few tears begin to roll down my cheek. Not because I'm upset at the memory, because I'm so proud of what I'm seeing.

The same girl who tried to convince me she'd never in a million years be famous, is performing in 'The World's Most Famous Arena'.

I think of how pissed off this would make our father, and it makes me grin ear to ear.


	16. Chapter 16

_Ruby's POV_

"_Have yourself a merry little Christmas, Let your heart be light_" I sing as I tape Christmas lights to the wall of our hotel room in a Christmas tree pattern. Aaron and Olivia are fast asleep in their pac-n-plays, and Jonah is with Trevor, wherever he went..."_From now on your troubles will be out of sight.._."

Today is Christmas Eve. Unfortunately, I have a show tonight in Minneapolis, so we'll be spending the babies' first Christmas in a hotel room, instead of our own home, and we won't be with Beck, Jade, and the girls.

I requested we _at least_ get to stay in a hotel, instead of having to sleep on the tour bus, management was more than happy to oblige.

"Jesus!" Trevor exclaims as he enters the hotel room, carrying a bag, Jonah on his hip, "It's fucking freezing!"

"Trevor!" I scold "What have I said about swearing in front of the kids?"

"He's only six months old!" He rolls his eyes "He won't remember if I do it once!"

"Or ten or twenty times?" I remind him

"Oh come on."

"Whatever." I sigh "Where did you guys go anyway?"

He holds up the bag he had been carrying, then throws it in my direction. I catch it and open it up.

"Tore the bus apart looking for it."

Inside, there's three pairs of fleece, "My First Christmas", footed pajamas,with cartoon Santas and snowmen all over, and little reindeer faces on the feet. One light pink, one red, and one green.

"Look Jonah!" I smile "It's the Christmas jammies Aunt Jade got you!"

The pajamas had been a gift from Jade when she visited us at Madison Square Garden, because she knew she wouldn't actually see the babies on their first Christmas. The next morning after we left, I couldn't find them, and I panicked. Trevor told me to calm down, that they had to be on the bus _somewhere_, but I honestly thought they were gone for good. Apparently not.

"I wish we could be home this Christmas..." I sigh "It's not just the babies' first, it's Violet's too."

Jade and I had shipped each families presents to the other, so we would still have them on Christmas. We got Beck a pair of green Beats headphones, and Jade a Tiffany charm bracelet. Sophie had gotten basically anything ballet themed I could find her, from outfits to dance shoes to tutus. And Violet, well let's just say, Violet got lots and lots of purple. I know Jade will probably be pissed, but I figured she should have lots of violet colored outfits and blankets.

"Aw babe." Trevor frowns and sets Jonah on the floor, then wraps his arms around me, "I know it's not ideal, but at least we'll always remember their first Christmas...and don't you worry, we'll be back home in less than a month, only twelve more shows."

"Only." I sigh.

* * *

><p>"Minneapolis!" I yell "Merry Almost-Christmas! If you celebrate Christmas...but hey if you don't, then Happy Holidays from our family to yours!"<p>

I brush the white puff ball hanging from my Santa hat out of the way and pick up my water bottle, the band does the same, Trevor takes off his guitar and disappears backstage.

"Speaking of family, I personally think this time of year it's especially important to spend time with the ones you love...Hey, do you think there's something you guys can help me out with?" I ask

The crowd cheers as I take a sip of water.

"Okay, okay." I laugh "That's what we need to talk about. I know you're all super excited because holidays, concert yay! and everything...but do you guys think you could keep the noise level at like a three or four on the ten scale?"

The arena erupts with cheers and screaming, which I hope means _yes Ruby, of course. _

"Alright on the count of three, I need it as close to silent as we can get in here okay. Ready? One...two...three!" I explain.

The arena goes almost dead silent, people are carrying on conversations, and it's still sort of loud, but it's not _nearly_ as loud as it was.

"Okay." I say and start moving towards the backstage area "If you get excited, I really need you to try your best to contain it!"

Trevor is waiting backstage with Julia, holding Aaron in one arm, and Jonah in the other. All three of the babies wear white, soundproof headphones, and their Christmas pajamas.

"Alright baby girl, ready to make your onstage debut?" I coo as Julia hands Livy to me. "Yeah? Awesome."

I start walking back onstage and Trevor follows closely behind me.

"So like I said, family is important , especially around the holidays. So I'd like to introduce mine to you." I smile "With my husband over here, we have Mr. Aaron Trevor and Mr. Jonah Thomas. And this little girl right here, is Miss Olivia Jade."

The crowd is cheering even though I told them not to, but luckily, it doesn't seem to phase any of the babies.

They're definitely my kids, 100% comfortable in the spotlight already.

* * *

><p>"Mommy wake up!" Trevor says<p>

I groan, but when I open my eyes, it's not Trevor I see, it's Olivia.

"Merry Christmas, baby girl." I smile

When I sit up, Trevor is sitting on the floor with Aaron and Jonah, both boys climbing all over Christmas presents.

"I didn't want to wake you..." he laughs "But I think I've put it off as long as I can now..."

"Well it _is_ Christmas." I laugh, picking up Livy and joining them on the floor.

After giving my three boys each a kiss, I sit down, Livy on my lap, and Trevor starts gathering presents.

"Let's do ours first," Trevor suggests "So they're easier to manage."

"Okay." I agree, pick up a few boxes and hand them to him, he gives me some as well

"Boys, come help Daddy." Trevor smiles and pulls them both onto his lap

"Well then I guess Livy will help Mommy." I laugh

Inside the first box from Trevor, is a silver necklace, with an A, a J, and an O charm on it. Jade got a similar one when Violet was born, except hers has an S and a V.

"For Aaron, Jonah, and Olivia." He tells me

"Did you steal the idea from Beck?" I smirk as I put the necklace one

"I might've." He shrugs

"Well I love it anyways." I kiss him "Okay now open one of yours."

He picks up the first box from me, and begins to open it. Inside is the newest PearPhone (a red one I might add) in a case that has a picture of the two of us with the babies, right after they we're born.

"Holy sh-...I mean cow." He corrects himself, I chuckle "Thanks babe!"

I get him some clothes and a new watch. The babies get him a guitar pick that has _Daddy_ engraved on it. He gets me a lot of jewelry and a new PearPad, but the initials necklace is my favorite gift. The babies get me a new robe and slippers as well.

Aunt Jade and Uncle Beck give them _lots_ of new toys, and an outfit each.

They get Trevor and I a plaque that says

_The Samuels Family_

_Est. 9-5-20_

_Ruby & Trevor_

_Aaron, Jonah, Olivia_

And it looks like there's room to add more kid's names if we need to...oh lord. Trevor gets a ticket to the Super Bowl...big surprise, that's what Beck gets him every year and they've always gone together. I get a certificate that basically says Jade will take me to get the next tattoo I want, and pay for it.

"Merry Christmas everybody." I smile as I watch my children giggle and play in the sea of wrapping paper

"Yeah." Trevor agrees "Merry Christmas."

* * *

><p><em>Jade's POV<em>

"Violet." I coo and zoom the video camera in on my daughter, who's sitting in her bouncy seat, in awe of everything around her "Violet, baby girl. Merry Christmas!"

The baby smiles at the sound of my voice, even though she probably can't see me. I'm too far away.

"Daddy." Sophie giggles "That's not what that's for."

I pan the camera over and see Beck wearing the new tutu Trevor and Ruby gave Sophie...on his head.

"Is this not how you wear it?" He asks

"No!" She laughs, takes it off him, and puts in on correctly "Like this!"

"I guess it's a good thing I didn't get one then!" Beck smiles "I'm clueless."

"Hey goofballs!" I chuckle "Merry Christmas."

"Merry Christmas, Mommy!" Sophie smiles and runs over to me so she's face to face with the camera.

I know it seems a little old fashioned to be using a video camera and not my phone, but with PearCloud and and everything they have these days, using my phone might mean sacrificing our privacy. And my kids don't need that in their lives, and there's no way a tape can leak on the internet unless someone steals it, which won't happen.

"Okay Squirt. How old are you?" I ask

Sophie holds up nine fingers.

"Nine?" I gasp

She smiles and nods.

"Okay, so tell me some important stuff that happens this year!"

"Aunt Ruby had _three_ babies!" She exclaims

"So you have _three_ baby cousins now?" I ask "What are their names?"

"Uhm...Aaron Trevor...Jonah uhhhhh..." She hesitates

"Thomas." I remind her

"Jonah Thomas...and Olivia Jade!" She finishes "Like your name Mommy!"

"Exactly like mine!" I smile "What else happened this year? In our family?"

"You had a baby, too!" She smiles

"I did?" I gasp "Was it a boy or a girl?"

"A girl!" She grins and points to Violet across the room "I have a baby sister!"

"What's your sisters name?"

"Violet!" She cheers "Violet Kaitlyn Oliver!"

"Can you give your sister a kiss?"

Sophie runs across the living room and planets a kiss on the baby's forehead.

"Merry Christmas, everybody!" Beck smiles

"Merry Christmas!" I repeat, and shut the camera off, placing it on the table beside me "Did you have a good Christmas, Soph?"

"Yeah!" She responds, still sitting behind Violet "I think Violet did too! She says she really likes her new bike seat!"

Santa brought Sophie a new big girl bike without training wheels, and Violet a baby bike seat to attach onto the back of my bike.

"Did you have a good Christmas, Mommy?" She asks me

"Yeah!" I smile "Thanks baby girl!"

I just wish I could spend it with my sister too...


	17. Chapter 17

_Jade's POV_

"Momma?" Sophie calls "Where are you?"

"In my office, baby girl!" I call back

"Momma." She says entering the room "You need to help me with my homework."

"Magic word?"

"Please?" She says, holding up a piece of paper

"Oh alright." I smirk and take the paper from her "A family tree, huh?"

"We're supposed to go to the website, answer some questions, print it out, and fill in the names." She explains

"Well doesn't that sound easy." I sigh and allow her to climb up onto my lap

I type in the address and the brightly colored website shows up. I click on _Create My Tree_ and start helping Sophie answer the questions.

_How many siblings do you have?_

"How many brothers or sisters do you have, Soph?" I ask

"Just Violet." She answers and presses the "1" key.

_How many siblings does your dad have?_: 1

_How many of your dad's siblings are married?_: 1

_How many kids does your dad's first sibling have?_: 1

_How many siblings does your mom have_?: 2

_How many of your mom's siblings are married_?: 1

_How many kids does your mom's first sibling have?_: 3

_How many kids does your mom's second sibling have?_: 0

After we hit the finish button, the blank family tree shows up on the screen, a web of blank boxes linked together in front of a cartoon tree. Theres a sidebar that allows you to add more boxes if you want.

"Do you want to add Trevor's family too?" I ask her

"Sure!" She exclaims

I click and drag a set of boxes for Ruby's in-laws, and boxes for his brother, wife and kids, even though they're not particularly all that close anymore, or that they ever were.

I hit the print button, and Sophie runs to retrieve the paper from the printer across the room. Meanwhile, I pull up the script I had been working on when she came in, and continue writing.

"Mom I still need help." She tells me, sitting on the ground next to me.

She has a folder on her lap, the family tree on the folder, and a pencil I'm hand.

"You can fill out some of the boxes yourself!" I tell her "Like yours and Violet's."

"Oh yeah!" She smiles and starts to fill in the box that says _'Me_'

_S-O-P-H-I-E M-A-R-I-E O-L-I-V-E-R_, I watch her write in her slightly crooked manuscript. And then _V-I-O-L-E-T K-A-I-T-L-Y-N O-L-I-V-E-R_ in the box linked to hers under the spots where Beck's and my names will go.

"Okay, now fill in Mommy and Daddy's names." I tell her

"Do I write _Jade West_ or _Jade Oliver_?" She asks

"Jade Oliver."

"Okay."

She write our names into the respective boxes.

"What's Daddy's sibling's name?" She asks

"Lauren Camden." I tell her "She's married to Jeff Camden and their son's name is Mikey."

I wait for her to write the names in.

Since her first Christmas, we haven't really talked to Beck's side of the family much, and I feel bad she doesn't really know them all that well. His parents send her Christmas and birthday presents, and so does his sister. His sister sends Christmas cards, and we send them to both parties, but besides that, not much contact.

"What are Daddy's parents named?"

"Martha and James Oliver." I say flatly

They never did like me all that much.

I expect Sophie to ask about her father's side of the family, why she hasn't really ever met them, or remembers meeting them. But she doesn't, and I'm extremely grateful.

"Now we have to do your side." She tells me "I like your side better."

"Me too." I laugh and turn my chair to face her "Just don't tell Daddy I told you that, okay?"

"Okay." She giggles "How do you spell Samuels?"

Violet begins to fuss in her baby swing next to my desk.

"S-A-M-U-E-L-S." I tell her as I move to pick up my younger daughter

She fills in Ruby and Trevor's boxes.

"And then Aaron, Jonah, and Livy." She says "Or should I write Olivia?"

"Write her real name." I say, sitting back down in the chair, Violet cradled in the crook of my arm.

"So Olivia?"

"Yes Olivia."

She finishes filling in her cousins names and then surprisingly moves on to Trevor's family next.

"Is this where I put Uncle T's parents?" She asks, pointing to the boxes above Trevor.

"Yes." I tell her "Thomas and Diana Samuels."

"Thomas like Jonah's middle name?"

"Exactly like that."

"What about Uncle T's sibling?"

"He has a brother named Derek Samuels, and he's married to Serena Samuels."

"Have I met them?"

I stop and think. Has she?

"A couple times when you were really little, maybe."

"Oh. Okay. Do they have kids?"

"Do they have boxes under them?"

"Oh! Yeah! What are their kids' names?"

"They have two boys. Logan and Reid. Spelled R-E-I-D."

"Is that why you didn't want to name Violet Logan anymore?"

"Part of it..."

She scribbles in the names, then comes the start of the questions I dread the most...

"Who am I supposed to put here?" She asks, pointing to the third box coming from my parents and next to Ruby and I.

"Uh...Caleb Avery."

"Who's that?" She asks

"My brother."

"I have another Uncle?"

"Kind of..." I sigh "He passed away a long time ago..."

"How long ago?"

"A couple years before you were born."

"I'm sorry, Mommy." She frowns, getting up and giving me a hug

"It's okay, baby girl." I assure her "Careful of your sister."

"Sorry, Violet." She kisses her sister's forehead before sitting back down

"It's okay, Soph!" I say in a baby voice, making the little girl smile "I love you!"

"I love you too!" She giggles "Okay Mommy, what are your Mommy and Daddy's names?"

"Maggie West and Patr-" I stop myself, thinking back to the night in the police station...

_Turns out, Patrick West isn't his real name. It's actually Maxwell Peyton O'Hare. He changed it about 20 years ago when he had to run from the law. Big surprise..._

"Maggie and John Avery." I correct myself

A child's father isn't the man who shares their DNA. Their father is the man who steps up to the plate and raises them.

And under that criteria, Patrick West, or I guess Maxwell Peyton O'Hare, is _not_ my father. Jonathan Avery is.

"Why do you and Aunt Ruby have a different last name than your Mom, Dad and brother?"

"It's...a long story." I sigh, unsure of what else to say

"Will I understand when I'm older?"

"Something like that." I chuckle


	18. Chapter 18

_Ruby's POV_

"Knock knock!" A PR manger says from the doorway of my dressing room "Remember you have that news station coming by in about ten minutes!"

"I know!" I sing-song, not snap straying from my task at hand...

Doing my makeup.

One of the Chicagoland news stations is coming by for a 'Behind The Scenes Tour'. Which basically means I have to show them around the entire production. Trevor has the babies in his dressing room so I don't have to worry about them during the interview.

When I finish my makeup, I set the brush down on the vanity table, make a few quick adjustments to my hair, then exit the dressing room.

There's a news crew standing in the main backstage area when I arrive; a woman, a camera man, and a few tech guys.

"Ruby!" The woman exclaims when she sees me "So nice to finally meet you! I'm Shannon!"

"It's nice to meet you too!" I smile and shake her out stretched hand "Shall we get started?"

"Of course! Just give us a few minutes to get the cameras working!"

I talk to her while the camera man and tech guys start adjusting the camera and microphones. Turns out she has twin daughters around Sophie's age who are both 'Mega-Ruby Fans', as she called it...

"Alright! When Mike gives us the okay I'll do the introduction and then it's all yours!" She tells me

"Alright sounds good!" I smile as Mike makes an 'okay' signal from behind the camera

"I'm here with America's biggest pop superstar, Ruby Samuels, backstage of her world tour here at the United Center! Today, we're getting special V.I.P. treatment! Right, Ruby?"

"You bet!" I grin "Hey Chicago! Let's get started!"

I lead them down a narrow hallway to the part I know everyone is dying to see. The stage.

"This is my stage!" I say "It's actually really cool. Tons of hidden tricks. Like over here! This is a trap door. I can rise up from under it, like I do at the beginning of the show, or fall down through it, like I do before my second wardrobe change!"

"Do you change down there?" Shannon asks

"No I run all the way back to my dressing room for each wardrobe change." I say proudly "I'll show that to you guys a little later."

"Is it far?"

"Depends on the venue. But it's usually far enough I need to run to get there."

I show them the catwalk and explain how the video screens move and work. Shannon follows me with the camera crew.

"These are the band tiers." I exclaim as I climb up onto the first one.

Each member of the band has their own tier to stand on, or I guess sit on if you're Zach. Each is eight feet by seven feet and they're of various heights depending on the instrument. The first is about seven feet tall and is off to what would be my left, the audience's right. That's where Trevor plays. The one behind that is about twelve feet tall and belongs to the keyboard/piano player, Mitch. On the opposite side of the stage is Drew's tier, which is about five feet tall. Behind that but slightly more center stage is Zach's, and it's about eighteen feet tall, since he's the drummer. There's either a staircase or ramp leading to every tier for easy access, both for the musicians and me, should I want to make an appearance on one during a show.

"Alright! Let's head backstage!" I smile

I start back down the same hallway we came from, but instead of heading back towards the exit, I make a few turns here and there, stopping to show them the freshly laundered rack of dark wash blue jeans, light blue dress shirts, bright red ties and dark grey vests the band will wear later. Then we arrive at the dressing rooms.

"This is my dressing room!" I inform them "Let's take a look inside."

I push the door open to reveal the vanity table I had been at thirty minutes prior, along with everything else.

"I don't have much stuff in here, since we don't stay in one venue for much time." I explain "But I have the important stuff. Makeup, clothes, a couple pictures..."

I show them the pictures I have of me and Jade, and of Beck, Jade and the girls, as well as the new ones of Sophie and Violet.

"These are my nieces." I tell them "I miss them terribly when I'm away. My sister too."

I show them around the rest of the room; my rack of clothes, the paper screen I change behind, the pac-n-plays...

"Now where are your kids right now?" Shannon asks

"Across the hall with my husband. Should we go visit them?" I smile

"Of course!" She exclaims

"Okay follow me!" I instruct them and walk across the hall to the dressing room Trevor shares with Zach

"Knock knock!" I say as I enter

"Mommy!" Trevor gasps "Hi!"

He's sitting on the couch, holding Olivia, and Aaron and Jonah sit on a blanket on the floor playing with some toys.

"This is my husband, and lead guitar player in my band, Trevor." I introduce him

"And these are your kids?" Shannon clarifies "The triplets?"

"They sure are!" Trevor grins "This is Olivia."

"And Aaron is in green and Jonah is in blue." I finish for him

"Who's oldest?"

"They're in alphabetical order," I tell her "Aaron is oldest, then Jonah, and then Olivia is the baby of the babies."

"Did you plan it that way?"

"We planned that the first boy born would be Aaron and the second would be Jonah yes, but it just worked out that Olivia was born last."

"Well, you certainly are lucky to have all of this."

"Yeah." I blush "I really am."


	19. Chapter 19

_Ruby's POV_

"Hi sweetheart." I smile and bend down to be at the little girl's level

"Hi." She says shyly and cowards into her Mom's leg

"She's just tired." Her mom tells me "It's way past her bedtime. She really does love you."

"I don't blame you kiddo!" I laugh "It's past my bedtime too!"

I fake yawn and the little girl finally cracks a smile.

"Hey. Wanna take a picture with me?" I ask

She nods and comes to stand next to me while her mom snaps a picture with her phone.

"Thank you so much!" I hug her "Keep dreaming big, okay?"

"Okay, Ruby." She smiles and leaves with her mom

Meet and greets, they're great.

"Holy crap, you're real!" The next girl in line exclaims

"I am!" I laugh as her and her friend approach me "At least, I think I am last I checked."

"Will you sign my show book?" She begs

"Sure thing." I smile "What's your name?"

"Brooke."

_Dear Brooke_, I sign

_No dream is too big, I believe in you. _

_Love always, Ruby_

"Oh my gosh thank you!" She squeals

"Mine too?" The other girl asks

"Of course. And what's your name?"

"Morgan."

_Morgan,_

_You have NO limitations. Never stop dreaming!_

_Ruby_

"Here you go." I smile and hand it back to her "Wanna take a picture?"

"YES!" They exclaim in unison and hand their phones to the security guy

"Saaay Ruby!" He laughs

"RUBY!"

"Thanks girls." I tell them "Put that up on twitter will ya?"

"Sure!" They tell me and scamper away

The next group is two couples and a young baby who's fast asleep, despite the fact she's wearing her large soundproof headphones still. She's definitely older than Violet, but probably younger than my kids.

"Hi guys." I greet them "How are y'all doin?"

"Awesome!" The first woman tells me "You we're amazing!"

"Yeah you're seriously talented!" The second one tells me

"Aw thank you so much." I blush "You guys want to take some pictures?"

"Do you mind if we take a few?" The first one asks "We want her to be in some but we also want a one of just the two of us."

"Sure let's do you two first." I suggest "Y'all look alike. Are you sisters?"

"We are actually." The same girl says "I'm Melanie, this is my sister Carly, her husband Rick, their daughter, and my husband Keith."

"Nice to meet you all." I say through a smile as Keith snaps a picture "I have a sister too."

"Jade right?" Carly smiles "The screenwriter?"

"That's her." I tell her as she takes the baby from Rick

"Would you mind holding her?" She asks "I think it'd be something cool to show her when she's older."

"Of course!" I exclaim "I love babies! Have three of my own, what's this little cutie's name?"

"Sydney."

"Hi Sydney baby girl!" I coo, even though she's asleep "Smile for mommy and Daddy!"

"You're a natural!"

Maybe that's because I have three kids?

"Thank you." I say again "Wait hang on I think I have something for her."

I go behind the picture backdrop and dig through the miscellaneous box of merchandise we keep back there for me to hand out to fans, and pull out a 8x11 glossy picture.

_Dear Sydney,_

_I can already tell you're destined for great things. Never give up, no matter what anyone tells you. Can't wait to see your name in lights someday._

_Love your first fan,_

_Ruby_

* * *

><p>When I board the tour bus later that night after the meet and greet, I find Trevor pacing back and forth, Olivia screaming in his arms.<p>

"What's the matter?" I ask him

"You tell me." He sighs "She's been like this for an hour and I'm afraid she'll wake the boys! I was gonna take her outside for a bit to see if the fresh air would help but the driver said we were pulling out as soon as you were-"

He's interrupted by the bus lurching into motion

"On board..." He finishes

"Let me try for a bit." I suggest and take the crying baby from him "See if I can figure it out."

"Good luck." He kisses my cheek "I'll see you in a bit."

He walks back towards the section where our bed and the pac-n-plays are and closes the divider.

"Livy baby, what's the matter?" I press a kiss to her forehead "You're not warm at all."

My mom used to do that to check for signs of a fever, so she could check us without us knowing, since a kiss is a harmless everyday thing, but we figured it out once we we're older, and still allowed her to do it anyways. I've seen Jade do it Sophie more times than I can count. She even used it on me a few times in high school, though it was usually against my will.

"Oh baby girl." I sigh "You're okay."

It kills me when they're like this, because I don't know how I can help them.

"_You with the sad eyes, Don't be discouraged..._" I start to sing to her "_Oh I realize, It's hard to take courage, In a world full of people,You can lose sight of it all, And the darkness inside you,Can make you feel so small..._"

The crying softens, but doesn't stop completely, so I rub her back and continue rocking her and singing

"_But I see your true colors_

_Shining through_

_I see your true colors_

_And that's why I love you_

_So don't be afraid to let them show_

_Your true colors_

_True colors are beautiful,_

_Like a rainbow_

_Show me a smile then,_

_Don't be unhappy, can't remember_

_When I last saw you laughing_

_If this world makes you crazy_

_And you've taken all you can bear_

_You call me up_

_Because you know I'll be there_

_And I'll see your true colors_

_Shining through_

_I see your true colors_

_And that's why I love you_

_So don't be afraid to let them show_

_Your true colors_

_True colors are beautiful,_

_Like a rainbow_"

When I finish, she's fast asleep, with her head lying on my chest, sucking on her fingers. Ever so gently, I change her into a pair of footed fleece pajamas, since Trevor seemed unsuccessful in the PJ department, and then make my way back towards the bed.

"That was fast..." Trevor smiles as we step through the divider

"Sometimes all it takes it a mother's touch." I say as I lay her down in her pac-n-play

"Wish I had that." He smirks

"Not tonight, babe. I'm exhausted."

"Can we cuddle then? Please?" He begs

"Sure." I laugh and lay down next to him

We fall asleep almost instantly, with me still in my meet and greet outfit.


	20. Chapter 20

_Ruby's POV_

"_Well I'm going home, Back to the place where I belong, And where your love has always been enough for me. I'm not running from. No, I think you got me all wrong. I don't regret this life I chose for me._" I sing as I open the curling iron and let another fresh, dirty blonde curl fall against my face "_But these places and these faces are getting old, So I'm going home. Well I'm going home._"

Tonight is my last show of the tour, in none other than Los Angeles, California, at the Staples Center. Tonight, I'll get to sleep in my own bed, and sleep for a very, very long time there after.

My phone buzzes text to me on the vanity table.

_*New Text Message* _

_From: Jade_

_Just walked in! Headed your way!_

I smile and put the phone back down so I can quickly finish up my hair. When I'm done I spray it with extra hold hairspray so it will last through the night, and head out into the hallway, only to bump into Max.

"Here she is." He chuckles "Doin' her hair, just like I figured."

"Aunt Ruby!" Sophie exclaims and practically jumps into my arms "I missed you!'

"I missed you too!" I smile and kiss her cheek "How are you?"

"Awesome!" she giggles "Look at my shirt!"

Its a lime green long sleeved shirt that says 'My Aunt Is The Coolest!" In bright blue letters with little white flowers all over the free space. A 'Ruby Samuels: World Tour V.I.P.' backstage pass hangs around her neck.

"I love it!" I tell her "Those are my favorite colors you know."

"Exactly why I just had to buy it." Jade says from behind her as she approaches, holding Beck's hand "Hey sis."

"Hey!" I smile and hug her "Hey Beck."

"Hey kiddo." He chuckles and gives me a hug as well "Long time, no see."

"I know." I sigh "Oh come on inside! Make yourselves at home! I'll go track down the rest of the clan."

I push open the door to my dressing room and allow the three of them to walk in.

"Aunt Ruby, do you have Strawberry Soda?" Sophie asks

"Do I?" I scoff "Of course I do!"

"Uh Soph, did we say you could have pop?" Jade says sternly

"Hey! She didn't ask you! She asked me!" I laugh "And I say it's a special night so she can have pop. Just sit tight and I'll be right back."

I jog down the hallway towards the open space where there's tables of food set up for the crew and performers and grab a bottle of pop for Sophie, and on the way back I stop at Trevor and Zach's dressing room to let him know Beck, Jade, and Sophie have arrived and that I can take the babies back now. He tells me he'll be down in a second once he and Zach finish the changes to the music arrangement. I decide to bring Olivia back with me so the boys are easier for him to transport.

"One strawberry soda!" I say in a French accent as I enter my dressing room again

"Yay!" Sophie cheers as I hand it to her "Thanks Aunt Ruby!"

"You're welcome." I smile "Oh jeez, sorry guys did you want anything?"

"A bottle of water would be nice." Beck shrugs

"Yeah." Jade agrees "I could go for a bottle of water."

"Oh that's easy." I chuckle and open the mini fridge underneath my vanity, pulling out two cold bottles of water "Here you go."

I toss one to each of them, which for some reason makes Olivia giggle hysterically.

"Look at you, Livy!" Jade smiles and opens her arms to the little girl, who goes to her willingly "You've gotten so big!"

She rests her head on Jade's shoulder, grinning as Jade sits down on the couch next to Beck.

"Hey Livy." He coos "How are you?"

"Speaking of babies," I chuckle as I sit down to start my makeup "How's yours?"

"She's real good." Jade smiles

"Yeah." Beck adds "She's a really happy baby."

"And Soph has been a huge help, haven't ya Soph?"

"Yeah!" Sophie exclaims, her mouth already bright red from the soda

"Knock knock." Trevor says from the doorway "The Samuels boys are here!"

"Hi." I smile as he enters the room, Jonah in one hip, Aaron on the other

"UNCLE T!" Sophie jumps up

"Woah hang on a sec!" I take Jonah from him and he hurries across the room to give Aaron to Beck "Okay, now I'm ready!"

She runs and jumps into his arms and he picks her up and spins her around.

"It's nice to have everyone together again." Jade smiles

"Yeah." I agree "It is."

* * *

><p>"Okay Los Angeles." I say as I strut down the catwalk at the beginning of my second encore "It's really almost time for us to go this time, but I just wanted to say a huge thank you to everybody in here right now. That's right, you guys on the floor. You guys on up in the nosebleeds, everybody! This tour wouldn't have been possible without you!"<p>

I wave to Beck, Jade and Sophie standing in the very front row as close to the stage as you can get.

"Before I go, you guys wanna hear one more song?" I ask

The crowd cheers

"Alright! Take it away boys!" I cue the band

"_Clock strikes upon the hour,  
>And the sun begins to fade.<br>Still enough time to figure out,  
>How to chase my blues away.<em>

_I've done alright up till now.  
>It's the light of day that shows me how.<br>And when the night falls...  
>The loneliness calls.<em>

_Oh I wanna dance with somebody,  
>I wanna feel the heat with somebody.<br>Yeah I wanna dance with somebody,  
>With somebody who loves me.<br>Oh I wanna dance with somebody,  
>I wanna feel the heat with somebody.<br>Yeah I wanna dance with somebody,  
>With somebody who loves me.<em>

_I've been in love,  
>And lost my senses,<br>Spinning through the town.  
>Sooner or later the fever ends,<br>And I wind up feeling down._

_I need a man who'll take a chance,  
>On a love that burns hot enough to last.<br>So when the night falls,  
>My lonely heart calls.<em>

_Oh I wanna dance with somebody,  
>I wanna feel the heat with somebody.<br>Yeah I wanna dance with somebody,  
>With somebody who loves me.<br>Oh I wanna dance with somebody,  
>I wanna feel the heat.<br>Yeah I wanna dance with somebody,  
>With somebody who loves me.<br>(Somebody who somebody who)somebody who loves me,  
>(Somebody who somebody who)to hold me in his arms.<br>I need a man who'll take a chance,  
>On a love that burns hot enough to last.<br>So when the night falls,  
>My lonely heart calls."<em>

Hundreds of huge multi-colored balloons fall from where they had been trapped up in a net above the arena earlier, all over the stage and all over the crowd. I can see Sophie grinning Erato ear as she reaches for them, Beck tries to use static to get one to stick to Jade's head, which pisses her off. But she smiles and throws one back at his face. I run around, kicking them towards the fans and throwing them as I continue to sing.

"_Oh I wanna dance with somebody,  
>I wanna feel the heat with somebody.<br>Yeah I wanna dance with somebody,  
>With somebody who loves me.<br>Oh I wanna dance with somebody,  
>I wanna feel the heat with somebody.<br>Yeah I wanna dance with somebody,  
>With somebody who loves me.<br>Yeah,  
>Don't you wanna dance with me baby?<br>Don't you wanna dance with me boy?  
>Don't you wanna dance with me baby?<em>

_With somebody who loves me,_

_Don't you wanna dance  
>Say you wanna dance<br>Don't you wanna dance..._

_Don't you wanna dance  
>Say you wanna dance<br>Don't you wanna dance..._

_Don't you wanna dance  
>Say you wanna dance<br>Don't you wanna dance...  
>Uh-huh<br>With somebody who loves me!_"

The band strikes its final notes as I jump through the trap door that had just opened up next to me, down below the stage, landing on a soft gymnastics mat. I lay there for a second, listening to the roar of the crowd as they cheer and start to file out, trying to catch my breath.

Thats it. The tour is over.

I can go home.

We can all go home.


	21. Chapter 21

_Ruby's POV _

"Can you see my bra strap?" I ask as I attach the back on my earring

"No." Trevor smirks "But I wish I could."

"Oh would you stop?" I tease "Isn't twice in one day enough for you?"

This is what I get for making him wait until we were engaged. Now he just can't seem to get enough.

"I can't help it." He whispers as he comes up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist and kissing my neck "You're just so beautiful."

"Nope!" I laugh and break away from him "Come on time to go, the limo has been waiting for ten minutes!"

"Aw come on!" He groans as he follows me out of the bedroom and down the hallway to grab the babies, then out to the waiting limo.

"Hi Miss Ruby." The driver greets me and opens the door "Mr. Trevor."

"Hi Walt." I smile

Walt has been my driver for as long as I've needed one. He's a sweet old man, like the grandpa I never had. I don't need a driver often, because in order to try to keep our lives normal, Trevor and I both own cars, as well as a family car we both share, and we like to drive ourselves places. But for special events like tonight, management makes sure we have Walt.

"Beck and Jade's to drop of the kids and then to the show, right?" He clarifies before closing the door

"Right." I assure him "Thanks Walt."

"My pleasure." He smiles and closes the door

I wear a black long-sleeved, tight, floor length dress, with a slit from the bottom until about my mid to upper thigh, and various mesh cutouts. I wear hoop earrings, a necklace and carry a clutch, all bright red in color. It honestly reminds me of something Jade would pick out for me, but I found it all my own. For the first time since probably college, my hair is straightened and not curled. Trevor wears a typical tuxedo, minus the vest, with a dark grey skinny tie. And the babies, well, they're not dressed up at all.

When we arrive at Beck and Jade's, Sophie is practically bouncing off the walls, so excited that her cousins _finally_ get to sleep over.

"Are you sure you can handle four babies?" I ask Jade "I can always call-"

"Don't worry about it." Jade waves me off with her free hand that isn't being used to hold Violet "Enjoy your big night! We'll be watching on TV."

"Thanks so much again for watching them." I hug her

"Yes thank you." Trevor repeats and hugs her as well

"Not a problem!" She assures me "I just hope Beck gets home from work soon so he can help me!"

After giving each of our kids and Violet a kiss goodbye, reminding Sophie to behave, and thanking Jade another thousand times for doing us such a big favor, Trevor and I retreat back to our limo.

We don't say much on the ride over, not until Walt has pulled into the drop off lane.

"Excited?" He asks me

"Yeah."

"Nervous?"

"Hell yeah!"

"Don't worry babe," he kisses me cheek "It's just like a giant meet and greet."

"Here we are!" Walt opens the door

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" I hear a loud voice say over what must be a loudspeaker "Welcome to the 67th annual Grammy Awards!"

I take a deep breath as I step out of the limo and I'm met by thousands of flashbulbs and their owners screaming my name.

"Ruby!"

"Ruby!"

"Ruby! Look here! Gimme a smile! Big smile!"

"Just keep walking and smiling." Trevor whispers in my ear as he grabs my hand

There's what seems to be an endless line of photographers and paparazzi all competing for who can get the best shot of us.

"Come on Trevor! Give'r a kiss!"

He obliges, but only once or twice, trying his best to keep everything professional.

When we exit the line of never ending photo-ops, there's the main carpet, full of celebrities and interviewers.

"And here we have Ruby and Trevor Samuels!" Says the perky blonde reporter in charge of covering the show for whichever channel it's being broadcast on.

"Hi." I greet her as we walk up, putting on an even bigger smile for the camera.

"Ruby you look stunning!" She gasps "Who are you wearing?"

"Chris Dangle." I smile "He's a genius."

"But you're beautiful on your own, babe." Trevor grins "You could've worn sweatpants and looked just as stunning."

"You sap." I smile and give him a quick peck on the lips

"Well obviously the marriage is fine." The reporter laughs "How are the kids doing?"

"They're great! Happy, healthy..." I tell her "They're with my sister for the night."

"Jade Oliver?"

"That's her."

"Yeah. She takes our kids for the Grammys...we take hers for the Emmys and the Oscars, we've got a great system going." Trevor explains

"Well what would happen if you'd ever both be invited to make appearances at the same event?"

"I'm not sure." He shrugs "Hopefully Sophie will be old enough to babysit by then!"

* * *

><p>"And the Grammy Award for Best New Artist goes to..."<p>

My heart is pounding, it feels like it's in my throat.

_Oh my god. _

_Oh my god. _

_Oh my god. _

I squeeze Trevor's hand.

"Ruby Samuels!"

I literally squeal and jump to my feet.

"You did it babe!" Trevor exclaims and kisses me "I'm so proud of you!"

_Mom would be so proud..._

I make my way to the stage and begin climbing the stairs literally shaking with excitement.

"Oh my god." I gasp when the presenter hands me the gramophone statue "Oh my god this is crazy. This job brings something new everyday, I literally could not be anymore shocked right now. This is insane. I have so many people I need to thank. First of all, Andre Harris, he signed me, he manages my career, thank you so much for taking a chance on me and thinking I had what it took. My husband Trevor, for standing by me for all these years now..."

"I LOVE YOU, BABE!" He yells

"I love you too. My babies, Aaron, Jonah, and Olivia. Mommy loves you so much! My nieces Sophie and Violet, you're amazing little girls. And my sister and brother-in-law, Beck and Jade Oliver. I would be nowhere without your love, support, and encouragement. Thank you so much for believing in me, and THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS AWARD!"

The music starts to play, telling me my speech time is up, and a handler comes and whisks me backstage, only so I can eventually return to my seat again.

"RUBY!" A woman yells "RUBY CAN I TALK TO YOU?"

I keep walking and pay no mind to her, just like I've been taught.

"Press need to stay in the press area, ma'am." a security guard tells her "That's the only area designated for interviews. Ms. Samuels will be there in just a moment."

"I'm not a reporter!" She insists "I'me from the APSAC!"

"The what?" I ask, paying attention to her for the first time

"The American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children." She says flatly "Morgan Cross. Pleased to make your acquaintance, Ms. Samuels."

"Call me Ruby..." I say confused, shaking the hand she's extended to me "Uh, can you give us some privacy guys?"

"You sure?" The security guard asks me

"Yeah I'm sure, thank you." I tell him

"Alright, just holler if you need anything." He smiles and walks away with the rest of the guards

"Uhm, anything I can help you with Ms. Cross?" I ask the woman.

"Please. Call me Morgan. This is very casual." she tells me "I'm very interested in talking to you, your sister, Jade, as well."

"Why?" I ask

"No use beating around the bush." She shrugs "I've been doing some research for quite some time now, on both of you. Police reports, school records..."

"Sounds more like spying to me..." I say flatly

"Anything is possible in this day and age thanks to the internet." She tells me "Anyway, you and your sister, I think you'd make perfect...advocates for our organization."

"Oh really?" I raise an eyebrow at her "And what would being an 'advocate' entail?"

"Tell your story, speak at a couple events, do a few ad campaigns..." She explains "But it would require you to go public with your story..."

I bite my lip. Tell the world what happened to us? We tried so hard to make sure no one found out. Obviously not hard enough if this lady knows...

"I'd have to talk to Jade." I tell her finally "I'll, think about it."

I start to walk towards the press area

"Well here take my card!" She hands me a slip of card stock "Give me a call once you reach your decision!"

"Sure." I nod and slip the card into my bra.

Whether we say yes or no, this decision is going to change our lives.


	22. Chapter 22

_Ruby's POV_

"What did you say her name was again?" Jade asks as she continues to stop whatever she's making on the stove, I think it's Mac n cheese.

My kids are at home with Trevor, Sophie is at school, Beck is at work, and Violet is napping. I'm sitting on the island in her kitchen while she makes lunch.

"Morgan Cross." I tell her

"Oh my god." She stops "That's what that lady wants? She's been calling me for weeks!"

Trevor and I had driven separately to pick up the kids from Jade, so he could take them home and put them down for a nap, and I can stay and discuss this newly surfaced...issue.

"Do you think we should do it?" I ask her

"Well I think we kind of have to now, Rube." She sighs

"What?" I exclaim "Why? We worked so hard to try to keep it a secret!"

"Because someone _knows_ now." She explains "Like it or not. And if we say no, this lady could go ahead and tell the world for us. Who knows if what she says will even be the truth?"

"I don't know, Jade..."

"Everything we do now doesn't just affect us anymore, we have husbands, and we have kids. Beck and Trevor, they lived through it with us, at least part of it. But the kids didn't. And what would you rather they know, the truth from _us_? Or whatever lies the _media_ decides to spin once they get ahold of Morgan Cross?"

"The truth." I sigh

"The truth." She repeats "So. Call that lady back and tell her we'll do it."

"Shouldn't you talk to Beck about this?" I ask as I pull Morgan Cross's folded up business card out of the back of my phone case

Of course, I explained the whole thing to Trevor last night before the limo had even left the parking lot, and he told me he'd support whatever decision I make.

"He'll want us to do what's right." She says "I'll tell him about it when he gets home, I don't want to bother him on set."

"You're sure this is the right thing to do?" I ask

She nods as I hit the 'call' button.

The phone rings once...twice...three times before I hear

"Morgan Cross, APSAC."

"Hi, Ms. Cross this is Ruby Samuels..." I sigh

"Ruby!" she exclaims "Hi! Did you talk to your sister?"

Jade is watching me, when I glance up at her, she gives me a reassuring nod.

"Yeah...yeah I did." I tell her

"Well?"

I close my eyes and take a deep breath.

"We'll do it."

* * *

><p><em>Jade's POV<em>

"Beck." I say into the darkness of our bedroom that night.

I glance at the clock.

1:38 a.m.

"Beck." I say again

He begins to stir next to me.

"Hey." He rolls over "Everything okay?"

"No." I admit "I trapped you."

"What?"

"At least that's what everyone will think once this story goes public."

"Jade." He groans as he sits up and turns his lamp on "What the hell are you talking about?"

"Morgan across wants us to go public with our story." I sigh

"Yeah I know we talked about this when I got home."

"Everybody is gonna know that I got pregnant in high school and that we got married literally right before Sophie came and everyone is gonna think I trapped you." I explain, a tear running down my cheek

"Oh sweetheart..." He sighs "Nobody is going to think you trapped me, anybody with access to Wikipedia already knows all that stuff anyway."

"But they'll know about Dad." I cry "And it'll look like everything only worked out because I was vulnerable and was just looking for protection."

"So what if people think that?" He asks me "Who cares? You and I both know that's not the truth."

"I don't want the girls to think of us like that, especially Sophie, she's almost old enough to understand..."

"We'll just have to make sure that when she starts asking questions, we tell her the truth."

"What if she doesn't believe us?"

"Jade, she thinks the world of you." He smiles "Anything Mommy says, has to be the truth."

* * *

><p>"Violet." I coo "Violet. Who's Mommy's precious little girl? Is it you? I think it's you!"<p>

I sit on the floor in Ruby and Trevor's living room, my back against the couch, knees bent, Violet laying on my legs, smiling at me.

"You're such a cutie pie!" I grin

Jonah sits on the floor about a foot or so away from me, and giggles, as if he thinks I'm talking to him.

"You're cute too, Jay." I smile at him

He giggles and goes back to playing with his toy.

"Okay." Ruby announces walking into the room, Aaron on her hip "All clean again."

"That's what you get for leaving water where he can get to it." I laugh

"Well I hadn't exactly _planned_ on him starting to crawl when I wasn't looking." She sighs

Ruby had been trying to comfort Olivia, who was upset for a reason unknown to both of us, when Aaron decided it was time to crawl and well...did. He got halfway across the room before I noticed him, but not before he pulled Ruby's glass of water over on top of him, leaving him soaking wet and in need of a new diaper and outfit.

"Aaron, buddy, I love your outfit!" I say, referencing his 'awesome like my aunt' onsie, that I may or may not have bought..." I knew he'd be the first one to crawl."

"Because he's the oldest?"

"Because he's a trouble maker." I smirk "Like Auntie Jade."

"They're all trouble makers." She laughs "Especially the boys."

"Well, boys will be boys." I chuckle "Not that I know. I don't have any."

"Ever thought about having any?" she asks "Is there a plan for number three?"

"Let's get this one sleeping through the night first." I laugh "Then maybe we'll talk about it."


	23. Chapter 23

_Ruby's POV_

"Alright ladies." Morgan smiles as we walk down the hallway of the production studio "Jade, this is your dressing room, and Ruby yours is right across the hall. I'll be back in a while to check on you!"

I turn to Jade, who shrugs and enters her dressing room, I do the same.

Im starting to think Morgan had always planned on us saying yes to her, like there was never a doubt in her mind. The minute I called her she started spewing details at me, so many I had to put her on speaker phone so Jade could hear too. There was no way I could've remembered it all in enough detail to parrot it back to her later.

She had already set up an interview special with the TV program _80 Minute_s on channel 6. '_Defending the Defenseless_' they're calling it. It's all happening so fast, a little too fast if you ask me. I'm not so sure if I'm ready for the world to know this story. They're going all out too. Not only are Jade and I going to be interviewed, us being the focus, but they also plan on talking to Trevor, Beck, and even David Vega was called in.

I pull the outfit I brought out of my bag, and start changing into. It consists of a darker denim long sleeved shirt, black skinny jeans, cream infinity scarf, and nude flats. They told us to look nice, but to feel comfortable also, since we are going to be spilling our life stories on national television.

I pull my make up out of my purse and start touching up my face.

I really hope this is one of those situations where you're scared before the anticipated happens, but once everything is said and done, you're met with a huge sense of relief. Like my wedding day, when I doubted myself, like every girl does, but I knew it was right the minute I said 'I do' and kissed him. Or how I was terrified to be a mother, but any trace of fear was gone the second Trevor appeared behind the sheet holding Aaron and grinning ear to ear. The first time I held one of my own children, I was so scared I'd fuck up their life, but the minute he opened his eyes and looked at me, I knew we'd be fine.

"Knock knock." Jade says quietly from the doorway

"Hey." I smile

She enters the dressing room, she's wearing dark grey skinny jeans, and a grey and black striped sweater, but she's still in just her socks.

"No shoes?" I ask

"Nah not yet." She laughs as she sits down on the arm of the couch "Hey, are you okay?"

"No." I sigh "Are you?"

"No, but I know its the right thing to do." she tells me "If we can save one kid from going through the same thing we did, then it's all worth it, I guess."

It's weird, seeing her so vulnerable like this, since she's always been so strong.

"I don't know if I can do this..." I admit

"Same, but it's too late to turn back now." She sighs

"Ladies!" Morgan exclaims "We're almost ready! So we can start whenever you want!"

"How is this going to work exactly?" Jade asks

"I was getting to that." Morgan tells her "Jade, we'll start with you. All you have to do is tell your story from the beginning, up until that day you left. Ruby, you'll go after her and do the same. Then we'll have you both tell the rest of the story together. When your husbands get here, we'll let you swap the kids so we can interview them as well."

"So I'm first?" Jade asks

"Whenever you're ready." Morgan tells her

"Well." She sighs "Might as well get this over with."

She grabs my hand and gives it a reassuring squeeze before following Morgan out of the room.

Alright cool, I'll stay here.

I lay down on the couch and put my headphones in, I have no idea how long Jade's interview will take, so I might as well try to take a nap, I might not have another opportunity for a while, with three kids running around and everything.

I wake up almost immediately after falling asleep, due to a knock at the door, which I swear I left open but apparently not. Is it time for my interview already?

"Come in!" I yell

The person who enters the room, however, isn't Jade, or Morgan, or even a production manager it's...my mom.

"Mom?" I gasp jolt upright

"Hi sweetheart." She smiles and enters the room, sitting down on the couch next to me.

"You're alive?"

"Am I?"

"Mom what are you doing here?" I ask

"I'm here to tell you what you're doing is okay." She half-smiles, talking one of my hands in hers

Hers are freezing.

"I'm scared, Mom." I admit "Of what people will think of us. I don't want the pity, or the judgement."

"Your story needs to be told, sweetheart." She tells me "It's like your sister said, if you can prevent this from happening to even one person, then everything will be worth it."

"Why did you do it?" I blurt out "Why did you marry _him_?"

"I was young and stupid, I took the first thing that came along." She sighs "I never stopped to think about the consequences. You, and your sister."

I don't say anything, just shake my head and try to stop the tears from falling.

"When I died, I was in the process of getting his custody revoked..." She tells me "We _tried_, Ruby. We tried to fix everything. This is how _you_ can fix things."

She gets up, kisses my forehead, and starts to leave.

"No!" I exclaim "Wait!"

"I love you, Ruby." She smiles and walks out

"Mom!" I yell and try to follow her

But when I try to stand up, all the breath is knocked out of me and I fall back down. When I open my eyes, I'm back laying on the couch, Carrie Underwood's '_Don't Forget to Remember Me_' blasting through my headphones.


	24. Chapter 24

_Jade's POV_

"Alright Jade, just start from the beginning." The interviewer tells me

"What would you consider 'the beginning'?" I ask

"As far back as you can remember."

"I was born on April 28th, 1995 in Los Angeles, California. To Maggie and Patrick West." I begin "From as far back as I can remember, my father never took interest in me. He and my mother were civil to each other, but I can honestly never remember a time I saw them 'in love', so to speak. Except maybe once, when my sister Ruby was born. They both looked genuinely happy that day. It didn't last long though, he always seemed annoyed with either me, my mother, or the new baby. So when they got a divorce around my eighth birthday, I wasn't all that surprised, even though I didn't fully understand."

"Dad didn't live with us anymore, we moved into an apartment with Mom. But we still had to go back to our old house every other weekend to see him. At first, I looked forward to those visits. He always took us to do all these fun things. We were regulars at Six Flags- Magic Mountain. We'd go to the movies, or bowling, or roller skating, and we'd stay up all night eating pizza and drinking pop Mom would never let us have, watching movies. The older I got, I started to realize he wasn't doing these things because he loved us, he was doing them to anger my mom."

"She didn't seem bothered though, she was remarried by the time I was eleven, and Ruby was eight. His name was John, I think of him as my father now, not my real dad. My sister and I both thought the world of him, which made our real dad furious. I noticed a major change in him that year. All the fun things we used to do, never happened anymore. He was hostile towards us, if I hadn't been old enough to work a DVD player and a microwave, I don't know what would've happened to us. He didn't talk to us, and it was a rare occasion if he remembered to feed us. He put on a face for Mom though, denied everything we said, blaming our 'wild' imaginations. For some reason, she believed him, probably because she had a new baby on the way."

"When my little brother Caleb was born, I was ecstatic. Now I had a brother and a sister. How cool to an innocent thirteen year old? But when he was born, I spent a lot more time with my Dad while Mom was still in the hospital. The first year of Caleb's life was when I discovered what alcohol can really do to a person. How it can warp someone's personality, turn them into something they're not. I remember hiding in Ruby's closet at our Dad's house, telling her we had to stay dead quiet, so he would forget we we're there. Meanwhile, he stormed around downstairs, flipping furniture and punching walls, drunk out of his mind. At that point, we knew what he was capable of, so we didn't dare tell Mom."

"That summer, I met Beck Oliver. He had just moved in about two blocks away from my Mom, from Canada. He was enrolled at the same performing arts high school as I was in the fall. We were your typical 'best friends who fall in love' story. We we're dating by our second week of high school. Mom and John both loved him, Ruby got along with him, but I didn't dare introduce him to my Dad. When he'd ask, I'd just tell him it was complicated and I didn't want to talk about it, and for a while, that was enough. My life was finally looking up."

"The summer between freshman and sophomore year, Mom, John, Ruby and I went to spend a week at John's parents lake house up in Northern California. They let me bring Beck. One night, John took Beck, Ruby and I out on a boat on the lake to go stargazing, while Mom stayed at the house with Caleb. I remember that night so clearly. it was dark and we were on the water, so the temperature had dropped. I was wearing Beck's hoodie and he had his arm around me. Ruby kept exclaiming how gross it was and John was giving him a hard time, the way Dad's do. That might was the first time I felt comfortable enough to call John 'Dad', so I did. And I kept doing it, eventually, Ruby did too."

"Then came that fateful day in September. I was in Sikowitz's fourth hour improv class. Lane, the guidance counselor, came into the classroom to get me, told me I was going home, that he'd explain when we got to his office. I got scared, and started imagining the worst case scenario. I was right, he sat me down and told me that my mom, step-father, and little brother had been in a car accident, and that they had all been DOA, dead on arrival. My dad was coming to get me."

"Dad acted sympathetically at first, but that didn't last. Ruby was younger than me,and taking it so much harder, and he just seemed to stop caring. That's when her nightmares started. She would wake up screaming at night, calling for Mom and John, and he did nothing. Leaving me to play the role of the parent. I would go into her room and try to comfort her, eventually there came a point when an episode occurred, I just ended up sleeping in her bed with her, just to give her something familiar and comforting near her."

"I was depressed, my entire life had changed, there we're times I considered breaking into my Dad's liquor stash, but I could never bring myself to do it. I stopped inviting Beck over, and he didn't understand. He thought I was seeing some other guy, and that's why I ignored him. So he broke up with me. I was heartbroken in a broken home. Dad got mad at me for 'moping around all the time', and not doing what he asked immediately when he asked. That's when the hitting started. One night, he hit me so hard, half my face swelled up and turned puffy, thank god Ruby was asleep. So I snuck out and ran to the only person I thought I could trust. Beck. I showed up sobbing at the door to his RV, which was three miles from my Dad's house, clutching my face and sobbing. Then he understood."

"Eventually, things started to get worse, if that was possible. Dad was drunk more, more moody. He hit me twice as much, and when I wasn't around , he'd hit Ruby. I felt terrible the first time that happened, like I had failed to protect her. That night I stayed up with her until four am, trying to calm her down enough to sleep. She was only thirteen. I couldn't turn him in, I told Ruby she couldn't either. We didn't have anyone else, no other family to turn to, so if we were removed from his custody, we'd most likely be put in foster care. If that happened, the chances of us being split up were very high. And we were all each other had left, I couldn't let that happen."

"We hung in there for another few months. One day, he came home with a new car for me. I told Ruby I thought he stole it, it was a really nice car. That was the last nice thing he ever did for me. Shortly there after, Beck, Ruby, one of her friends, and I took a day trip to Venice Beach. It was a fun day, Ruby was old enough her and her friend could run off without me worrying about them, and I could enjoy time with my boyfriend. However, when Beck dropped us off that night, Dad was already home from work, and had enough time alone to himself to be reasonably hammered. We walked in, still in our swimsuits, to him screaming for us to come out of our rooms and get downstairs 'immediately'. I told Ruby to hide in her closet until I came for her. She was reluctant at first, but finally after some persuasion, she went."

"I found him in the living room, sitting in his chair, watching something on sports center. Without warning, he jumped at me, tackling me to the ground. I'd heard about this, seen it in movies, but never in my life did I think my own father would try to rape me. He tore my bikini top off, pinning my body down, and trying to work on the bottoms. Thankfully the alcohol did me a favor this time, he threw up, then passed out on top of me, without doing any further damage. I was able to push him off of me, and retreat upstairs, praying the entire time he wouldn't remember what happened. I felt so dirty, knowing he almost violated me like that. When I went to get Ruby, she practically tackled me again, so grateful I was okay. She told me I was screaming like he was trying to kill me."

"It took me a while to get over the rape-attempt, when I would shower, I would just scrub every part of my body over and over, trying to get the disgusting feeling off my skin. The only comfort I was able to find was a few weeks later, when I had sex with Beck for the first time. And then again a second time a short time after. The idea that I could save myself for marriage went straight out the window, at no fault to Beck, the decision was all mine."

"I had a project to work on with Beck the second or third week of our senior year. Ruby had just started at the same high school as us, and she was thriving, so I figured she'd be fine home alone for an hour or so, as long as I got home before Dad did. Which I did. However, while I was in the shower, Dad came home early. When Ruby hadn't started dinner at 4:30 in the afternoon, he got so angry, and hit her repeatedly. I got out of the shower to find her in a crumpled mess on the floor, Dad nowhere to be found. That's when I knew..."

"Knew what?" The interviewer asks

"That we had to leave."


	25. Chapter 25

**Channel 6 Presents An 80 Minutes Special Report: Defending the Defenseless**

**Featuring the story of America's favorite pair of celebrity sisters, Jade Oliver and Ruby Samuels **

Anchor: Child abuse. It's a tragic thing. But often, it happens without us even knowing. Tonight, we feature of one of those tragic stories. It's the story of award-winning screenwriter, Jade Oliver, and her little sister, pop music sensation, Ruby Samuels.

Jade: From as far back as I can remember, my father never took interest in me. He and my mother were civil to each other, but I can honestly never remember a time I saw them 'in love', so to speak. Except maybe once, when my sister Ruby was born. They both looked genuinely happy that day. It didn't last long though, he always seemed annoyed with either me, my mother, or the new baby. So when they got a divorce around my eighth birthday, I wasn't all that surprised, even though I didn't fully understand.

_*pictures of Jade and Ruby as children flash across the screen as Jade continues to talk*_

Dad didn't live with us anymore, we moved into an apartment with Mom. But we still had to go back to our old house every other weekend to see him. At first, I looked forward to those visits. He always took us to do all these fun things. We were regulars at Six Flags- Magic Mountain. We'd go to the movies, or bowling, or roller skating, and we'd stay up all night eating pizza and drinking pop Mom would never let us have, watching movies. The older I got, I started to realize he wasn't doing these things because he loved us, he was doing them to anger my mom.

She didn't seem bothered though, she was remarried by the time I was eleven, and Ruby was eight. His name was John, I think of him as my father now, not my real dad. My sister and I both thought the world of him, which made our real dad furious. I noticed a major change in him that year. All the fun things we used to do, never happened anymore. He was hostile towards us, if I hadn't been old enough to work a DVD player and a microwave, I don't know what would've happened to us. He didn't talk to us, and it was a rare occasion if he remembered to feed us. He put on a face for Mom though, denied everything we said, blaming our 'wild' imaginations. For some reason, she believed him.

_*pictures of Jade and Ruby holding Caleb, pictures of the three children with Maggie and John Avery_*

The first year of Caleb's life was when I discovered what alcohol can really do to a person. How it can warp someone's personality, turn them into something they're not. I remember hiding in Ruby's closet at our Dad's house, telling her we had to stay dead quiet, so he would forget we we're there. Meanwhile, he stormed around downstairs, flipping furniture and punching walls, drunk out of his mind. At that point, we knew what he was capable of, so we didn't dare tell Mom."

That summer, I met Beck Oliver. He had just moved in about two blocks away from my Mom, from Canada. He was enrolled at the same performing arts high school as I was in the fall. We were your typical 'best friends who fall in love' story. We we're dating by our second week of high school. Mom and John both loved him, Ruby got along with him, but I didn't dare introduce him to my Dad.

The summer between freshman and sophomore year, Mom, John, Ruby and I went to spend a week at John's parents lake house up in Northern California. They let me bring Beck. One night, John took Beck, Ruby and I out on a boat on the lake to go stargazing, while Mom stayed at the house with Caleb. I remember that night so clearly. it was dark and we were on the water, so the temperature had dropped. I was wearing Beck's hoodie and he had his arm around me. Ruby kept exclaiming how gross it was and John was giving him a hard time, the way Dad's do. That might was the first time I felt comfortable enough to call John 'Dad', so I did. And I kept doing it, eventually, Ruby did too."

*_pictures of a young Beck and Jade, some with an even younger Ruby and Caleb, and some with Maggie and John Avery*_

Then came that fateful day in September. I was in Sikowitz's fourth hour improv class. Lane, the guidance counselor, came into the classroom to get me, told me I was going home, that he'd explain when we got to his office. I got scared, and started imagining the worst case scenario. I was right, he sat me down and told me that my mom, step-father, and little brother had been in a car accident, and that they had all been DOA, dead on arrival. My dad was coming to get me.

Ruby: I was left in my father's custody, along with my older sister. I was twelve. She was fifteen. And he was the devil. He was drunk whenever he was home, and he grew abusive towards my sister and I. Especially Jade, to this day, we don't know if it was because she was older, or if he just had it out for her, but there was always a new bruise, a new cut, something to mark that he had been there. She covered it all up with make up so no one ever found out. I had nightmares. Terrible nightmares, on the borderline of night terrors. My dad didn't care, the only person who did was Jade.

Jade: She would wake up screaming at night, calling for Mom and John, and he did nothing. Leaving me to play the role of the parent. I would go into her room and try to comfort her, eventually there came a point when an episode occurred, I just ended up sleeping in her bed with her, just to give her something familiar and comforting near her.

Ruby: She always came to my rescue at night when I had an episode. I felt bad, she was more my parent than my dad was. Then, he started to hit me.

Jade:I felt terrible the first time that happened, like I had failed to protect her. That night I stayed up with her until four am, trying to calm her down enough to sleep. She was only thirteen. I couldn't turn him in, I told Ruby she couldn't either. We didn't have anyone else, no other family to turn to, so if we were removed from his custody, we'd most likely be put in foster care. If that happened, the chances of us being split up were very high. And we were all each other had left, I couldn't let that happen.

I was depressed, my entire life had changed, there we're times I considered breaking into my Dad's liquor stash, but I could never bring myself to do it. I stopped inviting Beck over, and he didn't understand. He thought I was seeing some other guy, and that's why I ignored him. So he broke up with me. I was heartbroken in a broken home. Dad got mad at me for 'moping around all the time', and not doing what he asked immediately when he asked. One night, he hit me so hard, half my face swelled up and turned puffy, thank god Ruby was asleep. So I snuck out and ran to the only person I thought I could trust. Beck. I showed up sobbing at the door to his RV, which was three miles from my Dad's house, clutching my face and sobbing. Then he understood.

We hung in there for another few months. One day, he came home with a new car for me. I told Ruby I thought he stole it, it was a really nice car. That was the last nice thing he ever did for me. Shortly there after, Beck, Ruby, one of her friends, and I took a day trip to Venice Beach. It was a fun day, Ruby was old enough her and her friend could run off without me worrying about them, and I could enjoy time with my boyfriend. However, when Beck dropped us off that night, Dad was already home from work, and had enough time alone to himself to be reasonably hammered. We walked in, still in our swimsuits, to him screaming for us to come out of our rooms and get downstairs 'immediately'. I told Ruby to hide in her closet until I came for her. She was reluctant at first, but finally after some persuasion, she went.

Ruby: He tried to rape her. She sent me upstairs so I wouldn't get hurt, too. I sat in my closet, listening to her scream and cry, it was terribly painful, I thought he was killing her.

Jade: Without warning, he jumped at me, tackling me to the ground. I'd heard about this, seen it in movies, but never in my life did I think my own father would try to rape me. He tore my bikini top off, pinning my body down, and trying to work on the bottoms. Thankfully the alcohol did me a favor this time, he threw up, then passed out on top of me, without doing any further damage. I was able to push him off of me, and retreat upstairs, praying the entire time he wouldn't remember what happened. I felt so dirty, knowing he almost violated me like that.

Ruby: I sat in my closet, listening to her scream and cry, it was terribly painful, I thought he was killing her. I told myself, if she didn't make it, I'd call the police, get him arrested, because I'd have no one left at that point. But, she did make it, he passed out before he could do anything too bad to her. I started crying when she opened the closet door, I tackled her in a hug, I was so scared to lose her. I don't know how she did it. She stayed so strong, took so much abuse from him.

Jade: When I would shower, I would just scrub every part of my body over and over, trying to get the disgusting feeling off my skin. The only comfort I was able to find was a few weeks later, when I had sex with Beck for the first time. And then again a second time a short time after. The idea that I could save myself for marriage went straight out the window, at no fault to Beck, the decision was all mine.

I had a project to work on with Beck the second or third week of our senior year. Ruby had just started at the same high school as us, and she was thriving, so I figured she'd be fine home alone for an hour or so, as long as I got home before Dad did. Which I did. However, while I was in the shower, Dad came home early. When Ruby hadn't started dinner at 4:30 in the afternoon, he got so angry, and hit her repeatedly. I got out of the shower to find her in a crumpled mess on the floor, Dad nowhere to be found. That's when I knew we had to leave.

Ruby: I don't know what made her finally snap, but one day, after he had beat me, she decided we were done. That we had to leave. So we did.

Jade: I just couldn't stand it anymore," Jade continues "I had to get us out of there. So we packed up all of our stuff, loaded up my car, and we left. I was just acting on a whim, I had maybe six hundred dollars with me that I had saved up over the years, which in reality, wouldn't get us very far for very long. I didn't have a job, or a plan. Somehow, we ended up at Beck's RV. He knew exactly what was going on, so he took us in. He grabbed some of his sisters old bedding from his parent's basement, and put it on his couch for Ruby. He and I slept in his full size bed. I don't know what we would've done if it wasn't for him. He saved us both.

Beck: I wanted to kill him. I think Jade would've let me too, if the state wouldn't have out them in foster care. So I did what I knew would be the right thing, I took them both in. My parents hated Jade already, so the fact she was living with me now, made the situation even worse. I reminded them of the deal they made with me when I got the RV, 'my roof, my rules.', but the relationship was still strained. And we couldn't afford to tell anyone the truth about why they had left.

Jade: That was a Friday night. That Monday, I started to feel really sick. I just wrote it off to stress from the previous weekend. My best friend, Cat Valentine, tried to convince me it might be something else. I didn't believe her, more like I didn't _want_ to believe her. Until the next day, when the same thing happened again.

Ruby: I knew something was up. She could handle anything, and a little stomach bug was bothering her? Cat drove me to and from school that day. When I got back to the RV that night, what I saw frightened me. Jade was clutching a pillow, sobbing hysterically, Beck had his head in his hands, like he was trying to figure out what had happened. I was really scared, I thought one of them was dying, or my Dad had found out where we were, and was taking some kind of legal action to get us back.

Anchor: As it turns out, stress was far from the cause of the problem. Jade, as it turns out, was nine weeks pregnant.

Jade: I was so scared, for us, and for the baby, I didn't want them to have to suffer for my mistakes. I knew I had to keep it, I wasn't going to abandon my child like my Dad had abandoned us.

Beck: We didn't know what we were going to do. The three of us could barely live comfortably in my RV as it was, there was no way we could add another body, even if it was a tiny one. So we decided we'd buy a house. I got two jobs, working four hours at a car garage Monday through Thursday, for about ten dollars an hour. And then Friday, Saturday, Sunday I delivered pizzas for minimum wage. It all added up to about two hundred dollars a week. Jade had about six hundred saved up, but it eventually came down to a house, or baby stuff...

Ruby: They forbid me to get a job too, but I did anyway." I smile "I told them I went to drama club, when in reality I was making $7.25 at the pet store across the street from the school

Jade:We we're furious with her when we found out. But thanks to Ruby, we had enough money to buy our little girl everything she needed, and put a down payment on a house. Things we're going great, until the night of the big showcase. Kiddo here gave a killer performance, that was the night I knew she'd amount to something huge. But after the show, Beck and I went out to dinner, to celebrate _his_ performance, and Ruby had a friend drop her off at the RV, when she got there...

*_A video of Ruby singing 'Let It Be' at the showcase is shown* _

Ruby: My dad was waiting for me. Luckily, I was able to dial Beck and Jade and out my phone on speaker without him said some terrible things about Jade...And...he stabbed me. Then he ran out. Leaving me to bleed to death.

Jade: Luckily, I had answered her call and heard the whole thing. I was so scared, and kicking myself for letting him to get to her and not being there to protect her. God, when I found her, laying there half-conscious, covered in blood, I swear my heart stopped. I rode in the ambulance, slept on the couch in her hospital room, because if there's one thing scarier than waking up in a hospital room, it's waking up in a hospital room alone.

Ruby: A week, and seven stitches later, I was good as new. But my father was no where to be found. Jade still wouldn't go to the police, but we moved on with life. We moved into the new house, Beck and Jade completely furnished and decorated my new bedroom. I felt safe, because he didn't know where we were. I was still having nightmares though...

Jade: It was when Ruby continued to have nightmares, despite being in a new safe environment, that I decided to turn to the police. Specifically, one of my my best friend's fathers, Officer David Vega.

David: I had two daughters of a similar age, and their story made me want to kill that man. Knowing what he did to them. I wondered how he slept at night.

Jade: About a week later, on my eighteenth birthday, Beck proposed, and told me he wanted to be married before the baby came. So I found a decent looking white maternity dress, Ruby and Cat and Tori found matching dresses left from the Christmas sales, and Beck and his friends found matching ties. We rented a few hotel rooms and a conference room at the holiday in a few towns over, and had ourselves a wedding.

Ruby: On the car ride home from the wedding the following afternoon, Jade's water broke.

Anchor: On May 16th, 2013, Sophie Marie Oliver was born at Hollywood Hospital.

_*pictures of various people holding Sophie, including Jade, Beck and Ruby*_

Ruby: They graduated high school like two weeks later. I sat in the audience with Sophie, but I'm pretty sure everyone thought she was mine. That was the night I met my husband.

Trevor: I saw her sitting there with a baby, by herself with no one else around. And I thought to myself 'okay this chick has to have a story...'. We've been together ever since.

Ruby: When Sophie was about five weeks old, my Dad resurfaced. This time, with his new wife...

Jade: He stormed into the house while Beck was at work, shot me in the arm, and kidnapped the girls.

Ruby: They held us hostage, tripping to convince me we were both his daughters, that Jade didn't exist. He got so fed up with Sophie's crying, he stormed out and disappeared, leaving me with my technical step-mom. When the police found us, I had been severely beaten, and Sophie was extremely malnourished, since they couldn't stop her crying long enough to feed her.

David: He was gone without a trace. We arrested Trixi, she's still in prison. But Patrick was just ...gone. Again.

Jade: I didn't care, I was just so happy to have them both back safe.

Trevor: He kind of left them alone for the remainder of the year. He confronted me and Ruby once when we went to school to decorate my locker, but I stood up to him, tried to scare him, when in reality I was terrified of him and what he could do to me, but he just left. We didn't see him again until New Years...

Jade: Ruby and Trevor got caught at a New Year's party where underage drinking had occurred, so I pulled myself out of bed at 1:30 in the morning to go get them. On the way home...

Ruby: The car just came out of nowhere. Everything went black.

Trevor: Ruby, Sophie and I had been in the backseat. When we came to, we were a little beat up, nothing bad. I think the worst was Ruby's sprained wrist. But Jade and the front of the car were gone.

Ruby: She was in a coma. Cat came home from New York, Tori rearranged her class schedule. Sophie would just scream for hours because she wanted her mom and didn't understand.

Beck: I had to get a third job just to pay the medical bills.

Trevor: Ruby was the worst, I was honestly afraid she was going to hurt herself. It killed me to see her like that and know there wasn't much I could do to help her...

Ruby: Have you ever gotten in a fight with your best friend? Or for some reason stopped talking to them? Like when somebody moves, or transfers schools? You know that terrible feeling you get in the pit of your stomach? That feeling of sadness and/or anger? And you just can't seem to shake that feeling no matter what you do?

That's how I felt all the time. That feeling in the pit of my stomach never goes away. In a way, I've temporarily lost my sister...

Jade: Apparently, I woke up in just the nick of time, if I had gone another three hours or something, they we're going to pull my plug and let me die. But then things started to look up when I got out of the hospital, Sophie turned one, Beck got a lead in a movie, and

Beck: I got her pregnant again...

Ruby: I think she made it about eighteen weeks before Dad came back. Long story short, he threw a couple punches, and Jade lost the baby.

Beck:I was filming in New York. I wanted to come home. She wouldn't let me, there is nothing more painful than finding out you've lost a child. So when I came back, I made sure everything that needed to be taken care of, was.

Trevor: I took Ruby out to dinner for our anniversary. I paid the check, went to the bathroom, but when I came back, she was gone.

Ruby: He drove me out to the middle of nowhere, beat me up, and left me to die. Luckily, a jogger using a nearby path found me.

Jade: I broke the speed limit a good five times trying to get to her. I wanted to kill him. But he was gone again.

Beck: I knew we weren't safe anymore, so with the money I got from my movie, I moved us into a gated community, where he couldn't get to them.

Jade: We thought we were good, it had been a few months since we last saw him, we were in a new location he wasn't aware of, I thought it was over.

Ruby: I went back to the old house with Jade to get the last few boxes of our things before the house was offically sold. And...he got us. I don't think either one of us saw it coming.

Beck: I was at the new house with Sophie and Trevor, we were going to go out to dinner when they got back. It was supposed to be a real quick stop. Neither one of them would answer their phones... I knew someghing was wrong.

David: Beck called me in a panic. It didn't take long to launch an investigation. I was determined to catch this guy once and for all.

Jade: He kept us locked in a basement, we were both pretty beat up. Ruby was worse off than I was though. We had to get out.

Ruby: I don't remember much, Jade says I went in and out of consciousness all four days.

Beck: I was so scared. He had almost taken Jade from me once before earlier that year. I was so scared to lose her again...it felt like my heart had been ripped out of my chest.

Anchor: Jade and Ruby managed to escape after four days and three nights of captivity. They were weak from lack of food, but managed to make it out to the front gate.

Jade: We tripped his alarm system. We were both weak, but took off running anyways. We were in the mountains, somewhere in a forrest. He followed us in his truck, but we stayed off the main road. We stopped to catch our breath at a tourist stop on the trail, but he knew we'd go there apparently. Thats when he told us the truth.

Anchor: Patrick West had been the other driver in the accident that killed the girl's mother, step-father and brother. He was determined to make the girls meet the same end.

Ruby: He started toward us in the truck, Jade jumped on me and we tumbled out of the way just in time. Apparently his breaks sucked, and he went over the edge of the cliff behind us.

Trevor: My heart exploded when Beck called me that morning. It was only like 1:30, but I was up and ready to go pick them up.

David: He broke his neck in the fall. There was no possible way he could have survived. The case was closed. Beck and Jade adopted Ruby so they could stay together as a family. From the outside, everything looked okay.

Anchor: Jade and Ruby continue to suffer consequences of their father's actions to this day.

_*pictures of Jade, Ruby, their husbands and children*_

Jade: I still struggle with the self-consciousness he inflicted on me. I still have terrible flashbacks sometimes.

Ruby: I still have nightmares, and night terrors. Jade and I both have some kind of PTSD.

Trevor: It kills me when she has an episode. Knowing there's nothing I can do, try as I do, to erase the past.

Beck: If he wasn't already dead, I'd kill him. I hope he burns in hell. I hate watching them suffer.

Ruby: My advice to someone suffering the same things we did? Don't wait as long as we did. Get out right now. Minimize the suffering.

Jade: If this helps just one kid from going through what I did, then that's enough for me.


	26. Chapter 26

_Ruby's POV_

"Well. It's out there now." I sigh and switch the TV off "No taking it back."

"You did the right thing." Trevor assures me and kisses my cheek "Gave someone out there the courage to stand up for themselves."

My phone buzzes on the bed next to me.

_*New Text Message*_

_From: Jade_

_I'm going to Jed's. Wanna use your Christmas present? _

I show Trevor the phone.

"Sure." He shrugs "If you want."

_Sure_. I respond. _Are we meeting?_

_*New Text Message*_

_From: Jade_

_I'll pick you up in five. Be ready._

* * *

><p>"A-A-R-O-N T-R-E-V-O-R, J-O-N-A-H T-H-O-M-A-S, and O-L-I-V-I-A J-A-D-E." I spell out for the tattoo artist "Then below that, 06-12-22".<p>

"How does this look?" He asks as he finishes up the sketch and pushes it towards me

It consists of the babies's names spelled out in simple lettering, each name stacked on top of one another, with their birthdate below Olivia's name.

"Perfect." I smile

"And where did you say you want it?" He asks "Your shoulder blade?"

"Yeah, my right one." I tell him

"Okay. Let's get this done for you then." He gestures to the tattoo chair that isn't being occupied by my sister.

I'm no stranger to tattoos. I have a heart on my ankle that I got in high school, my sixteenth birthday present from Trevor. Jade almost had a heart attack when she saw it. On the inside of my left middle finger, I have a queen of hearts "Q" symbol, Trevor has the same one, except the king. We got them when we got engaged. Then after we got married, we got puzzle pieces on our lower forearms ,closer to our wrists. Mine is on my left, a flesh piece with a black heart, his is on his right, a black piece with a flesh heart. When I sold my first album, I got "Let It Be..." On the heel of my right hand.

"So you sure this is what you want?" The guys asks as he wiped my shoulder off with an alcohol pad

"Positive." I respond "Mind if I put my headphones in?"

Music helps me take my mind off any pain I might experience, in any circumstance.

"I could honestly care less." He shrugs

"Alright."

I pull my headphones out of my purse, plug them into my phone, and tune out the world.

_You better take it from me, that boy is like a disease_

_You're running, you're trying, you're trying to hide_

_And you're wondering why you can't get free_

I flinch as the needle connects with my skin and it starts to sting.

_He's like a curse, he's like a drug_

_You get addicted to his love_

_You wanna get out but he's holding you down_

_'Cause you can't live without one more touch_

_He's a good time cowboy casanova_

_Leaning up against the record machine_

_Looks like a cool drink of water_

_But he's candy-coated misery_

_He's the devil in disguise_

_A snake with blue eyes_

_And he only comes out at night_

_Gives you feelings that you don't want to fight_

_You better run for your life_

_I see that look on your face_

_You ain't hearing what I say_

_So I'll say it again_

_'Cause I been where you been_

_And I know how it ends_

_You can't get away_

_Don't even look in his eyes_

_He'll tell you nothing but lies_

_And you wanna believe_

_But you won't be deceived_

_If you listen to me_

_And take my advice_

_He's a good time cowboy casanova_

_Leaning up against the record machine_

_Looks like a cool drink of water_

_But he's candy-coated misery_

_He's the devil in disguise_

_A snake with blue eyes_

_And he only comes out at night_

_Gives you feelings that you don't want to fight_

_You better run for your life_

_Run run away_

_Don't let him mess with your mind_

_He'll tell you anything you want to hear_

_He'll break your heart_

_It's just a matter of time_

_But just remember_

_He's a good time cowboy casanova_

_Leaning up against the record machine_

_Looks like a cool drink of water_

_But he's candy-coated misery_

_He's the devil in disguise_

_A snake with blue eyes_

_And he only comes out at night_

_Gives you feelings that you don't want to fight_

_You better run for your life_

_Oh you better run for your life_

_Oh you better run for your life_

Someone taps my hand, I open my eyes to see Jade standing in front of me. I smile at her, but don't take my headphones out. The next song starts.

_We're a thousand miles from comfort, we have traveled land and sea_

_But as long as you are with me, there's no place I'd rather be_

She holds out her right wrist and shows me the fresh 'VKO' she got under the 'BJO' and 'SMO' that were already there.

I expect her to stop there, put she also shows me a small 'JCO' between a set of angel wings on the inside of her right thumb.

I smile a sympathetic smile, she returns the gesture. Then walks away presumably to pay.


	27. Chapter 27

Ruby's POV

"Aunt Ruby!" Sophie calls "Look!"

She dances around the living room to the music playing from the stereo, Aaron crawls around her feet, Jonah and Livy play nearby them.

Jade had to take Violet to a doctor's appointment, Beck had to work, so I picked Sophie up from school today and I'm watching her for a while. Trevor had some meetings to go to today, so it's nice to have another person around to help me with the babies.

"Come dance with me!" She smiles

"Oh I don't know kiddo..." I sigh, I'm kinda tired

"Please!" She begs, running up to me and staring at me with huge puppy dog eyes

"You can't use that on me!" I laugh "I taught you that!"

"You said it works every time, though." She reminds me "Come on Aunt Ruby, don't be a liar."

I let out a sigh that probably sounds more like a laugh to her.

"You're just like your mom, you know that?" I tell her

"Daddy tells me that all the time!" She giggles, taking my hand and dragging me back towards the living room "Come on Aunt Ruby, dance!"

"I'm dancing goofball! What does it look like?" I laugh as I move back and forth with her

The song she had been playing ends and another one starts to play. It's a song all to familiar to me, that came out my junior year of high school. Sophie seems to love it to this day though.

"Sing Aunt Ruby!" She begs

"Nah I'm good." I tease

"Please!"

"Oh alright fine." I roll my eyes " I stay out too late, Got nothing in my brain, That's what people say, mmm-mmm,That's what people say, mmm-mmm"

Sophie giggles and grabs my hands, spinning in circles around me.

"_I go on too many dates_

_But I can't make them stay_

_At least that's what people say, mmm-mmm_

_That's what people say, mmm-mmm_"

Jonah starts to fuss from his pot on the floor.

"Come on bud," I smile and pick him up, resting him on my hip "Dance with Mommy."

Livy, jealous of the attention she's not getting, starts to fuss, so I pick her up too.

Jeez, I hope Aaron doesn't want up as well

"_But I keep cruising_

_Can't stop, won't stop moving_

_It's like I got this music_

_In my mind_

_Saying, 'It's gonna be alright._'"

"Aunt Ruby can I dance with Aaron?" Sophie asks

"If you're very careful." I warn

"Don't worry!" She assures me as she picks the baby up "I will be!"

"'_Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play_

_And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate_

_Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake_

_I shake it off, I shake it off_

_Heart-breakers gonna break, break, break, break, break_

_And the fakers gonna fake, fake, fake, fake, fake_

_Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake_

_I shake it off, I shake it off_

_I never miss a beat_

_I'm lightning on my feet_

_And that's what they don't see, mmm-mmm_

_That's what they don't see, mmm-mmm_

_I'm dancing on my own_

_I make the moves up as I go_

_And that's what they don't know, mmm-mmm_

_That's what they don't know, mmm-mmm_

_But I keep cruising_

_Can't stop, won't stop grooving_

_It's like I got this music_

_In my mind_

_Saying, 'It's gonna be alright.'_

_'Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play_

_And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate_

_Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake_

_I shake it off, I shake it off_

_Heart-breakers gonna break, break, break, break, break_

_And the fakers gonna fake, fake, fake, fake, fake_

_Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake_

_I shake it off, I shake it off_

_Shake it off, I shake it off,_

_I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off,_

_I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off,_

_I, I, I shake it off, I shake it of_f"

"Take it, Soph!" I smile to the little girl

I know she knows the entire song

"_Just think while you've been getting down and out about the liars and the dirty, dirty cheats of the world,_

_You could've been getting down to this sick bea_t." I chant before Sophie joins in

"_My ex-man brought his new girlfriend_

_She's like "Oh, my god!" but I'm just gonna shake._

_And to the fella over there with the hella good hair_

_Won't you come on over, baby? We can shake, shake, shake_"

"You can do it now." She blushes and plays with Aaron's hand

"'_Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play_

_And the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate (haters gonna hate)_

_I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake_

_I shake it off, I shake it off_

_Heart-breakers gonna break, break, break, break, break (mmmm)_

_And the fakers gonna fake, fake, fake, fake, fake (and fake, and fake, and fake)_

_Baby, I'm just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake_

_I shake it off, I shake it off"_

"Oh no." Jade groans as she walks in the front door, carrying Violet's carseat "Not _this_ song again."

"Hi Mom!" Sophie waves

"Careful, Sophie Marie," Jade warns "Two hands on the baby. He's just like Violet."

"Sorry."

"Hey." I say walking over to my sister "How was the doctor?"

"She's totally healthy." Jade shrugs "But if another reporter yells _'Jade why did you keep your past a secret for so long?_' or something along those lines at me again, I'm going to punch someone."

"People like that is the exact reason." I sigh "Just wait, it'll die down."

"Until we get asked to speak at a benefit or something." She rolls her eyes "Maybe this whole thing was a mistake..."

"No." I correct her "No it was the right thing to do. We're gonna get through this."


	28. Chapter 28

_Jade's POV_

I knew when I fell asleep, Sophie would probably be joining Beck and I in bed tonight, with the way the radar was looking. So when I heard her whisper 'Mommy?' Can I sleep with you tonight?', I didn't even have to think before throwing the sheets off and letting her climb I between Beck and I.

She's asleep now, clinging to me like we could be ripped a part at any second and we would never see each other again. For some reason, I smile. It's nice to know she still depends on me for something.

"She's almost ten..." Beck murmurs "We need to start working on this fear of thunder."

"It might be pathological." I whisper, careful not to wake my daughter "You never know."

"Patho-what?!" He asks

"Pathological." I chuckle "You know. An irrational fear of something that poses little or no danger, but still causes you a lot off anxiety because you're just _that_ scared? Come on, didn't you read Because of Winn-Dixie?"

"No." Beck smirks "Did you?"

"Yeah." I say proudly "I read it to Sophie when she was six or seven."

"Here's a gold star." He laughs "Anyway back to the point. We need to try and help her overcome this fear."

"How? We can't just _abandon_ her."

Another crack of thunder echoes above the house. Sophie cringes and moves closer to me.

"I never said we had to _abandon_ her." He sighs "Maybe next time we lay with her in her bed until the storm is over. Try that for a while. Then just lay with her in her bed until she falls asleep, then leave. Small steps, make it a process."

"Alright." I sigh "I guess."

"Good." He nods and starts to get up "Now let me take her back to bed."

"No." I insist and pull her a little closer to me "Come on, just one more time..."

* * *

><p><em>"BECK!" Ruby yells. <em>

_He jolts awake and falls out of bed. I jump slightly, but not as much as Beck did._

_"What the hell Ruby?" I grumble sleepily._

_"She's been calling for you for the past 20 minutes." She explains gesturing to the hiccupping baby in her arms._

_Aw, she was crying so hard she has the hiccups._

_"Oh I'm sorry baby." Beck coos as he gets up "Are you scared of the thunder?"_

_Sophie nods as she passes her to him._

_"Here, you can lay right here in between me and Mommy okay? Just be careful okay? Don't bump Mommy too hard, we don't wanna hurt her even more than we have okay?"_

_Ruby sighs and goes back to her room._

_And so the age of screaming-whenever- there's a-thunderstorm begins._

* * *

><p>"Alright." He lays back down<p>

"Momma?" Sophie whimpers

We must've woken her.

"It's okay baby." I whisper and kiss her forehead "I'm here. It's okay."

"It's loud." She whispers and snuggles up to me

"I know." I sigh "But thats all it is, loud. It can't hurt you."

"But it's scary."

"I know, I know."

We lay in silence for a few minutes. I don't know where her fear of thunder comes fro,, I find thunderstorms relaxing, and so does Ruby. It must be Beck's side...

"Mommy?" Sophie breaks the silence "Will you sing to me?"

"Will that help you fall asleep?"

She nods.

"Alright." I sigh

"_You won't find him drinking at the table_

_Rolling dice or staying out 'til three_

_You won't ever find him be unfaithful_

_You will find him, you'll find him next to me_

_You won't find him tryna chase the devil_

_For money, fame, for power, out of greed_

_You won't ever find him where the rest go_

_You will find him, you'll find him next to me_

_Next to me_

_Next to me_

_Next to me_

_You will find him, you'll find him next to me_

_When the money's spent and all my friends have vanished_

_And I can't seem to find no help or love for free_

_I know there's no need for me to panic_

_Cause I'll find him, I'll find him next to me_

_When the skies are grey and all the doors are closing_

_And the rising pressure makes it hard to breathe_

_When all I need's a hand to stop the tears from falling_

_I will find him, I'll find him next to me_

_Next to me_

_Next to me_

_Next to me_

_I will find him, I'll find him next to me_

_When the end has come and buildings falling down fast_

_When we've spoilt the land and dried up all the sea_

_When everyone has lost their heads around us_

_You will find him, you'll find him next to me_

_Next to me_

_Next to me_

_Next to me_

_You will find him, you'll find him next to me_

_Next to me_

_Next to me_

_Next to me_

_You will find him, you'll find him next to me_"

"Daddy's always next to you, right mommy?" She asks

"He sure is." I smile "One day you'll find a guy who will always be next to you, too."

"Boys are icky." She shakes her head

"You keep thinking like that, okay?" I chuckle "Never grow up."

"Okay, Mom."


	29. Chapter 29

_Ruby's POV_

Beams of sunlight shine through the cracks in the curtains, streaming across my face as I open my eyes and stretch my arms. I lean over to kiss Trevor good morning, but he's not there. I almost panic when he opens the bedroom door, dressed in a nice shirt, tie and jeans, holding one of his acoustic guitars.

"Good morning." I laugh

He smirks at me and begins to strum a few chords on the guitar...

"_When your legs don't work like they used to before_

_And I can't sweep you off of your feet_

_Will your mouth still remember the taste of my love?_

_Will your eyes still smile from your cheeks?_

_And, darling, I will be loving you 'til we're 70_

_And, baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23_

_And I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways_

_Maybe just the touch of a hand_

_Well, me—I fall in love with you every single day_

_And I just wanna tell you I am_

_So honey now_

_Take me into your loving arms_

_Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars_

_Place your head on my beating heart_

_I'm thinking out loud_

_That maybe we found love right where we are_

_When my hair's all but gone and my memory fades_

_And the crowds don't remember my name_

_When my hands don't play the strings the same way_

_I know you will still love me the same_

_'Cause honey your soul could never grow old, it's evergreen_

_And, baby, your smile's forever in my mind and memory_

_I'm thinking 'bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways_

_"Maybe it's all part of a plan_

_Well, I'll just keep on making the same mistakes_

_Hoping that you'll understand_

_But, baby, now_

_Take me into your loving arms__Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars_

_Place your head on my beating heart_

_Thinking out loud_

_That maybe we found love right where we are_

_So, baby, now_

_Take me into your loving arms_

_Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars_

_Oh, darling, place your head on my beating heart_

_I'm thinking out loud_

_That maybe we found love right where we are_

_Oh, baby, we found love right where we are"_

_And we found love right where we are..._"

"Awwww." I blush "I love you."

"I love you too." He kisses me "Happy Valentine's Day."

"Happy Valentine's Day."

* * *

><p>"Good morning, my little love bugs." I coo as I enter the nursery to get the babies up "Happy Valentine's Day!"<p>

They've probably been up for hours, but Trevor and I...well you can probably guess what we did after he sang to me, so that pushed our regular schedule back an hour and a half.

I'm met by three smiling faces, excited to see me.

"Miss Olivia." I smile as I lift her out of her crib and carry her over to the changing table.

I change her diaper and dress her in an outfit that consists of a red long-sleeved shirt that says 'I'm Daddy's Valentine' in pink letters, and pink and red striped leggings. I add a white headband with a red flower on it.

"Baby girls are so fun to dress." I sigh as I set her down on the floor to play and go back for the boys "You guys are fun too...but her clothes are cuter."

I repeat the same process with Jonah, dressing him in a white long-sleeved onsie that says 'Certified Stud Muffin'.

"Uh babe?" Trevor says from behind me "Lose something?"

I turn around to see him standing in the doorway, towel wrapped around his waist, his hair ruffled and damp. He probably just got out of the shower and he's holding...Olivia?

"Olivia Jade." I gasp "Did you crawl to find Daddy?"

"She sure did." Trevor smiles, playing with her hand, causing the baby to smiles "She was in our room when I got out of the shower."

Aaron and Jonah had started crawling within days of each other, and Olivia well..didn't. They say all babies develop at different paces, but she was starting to scare us a little.

"We're gonna have to call Aunt Jade and Uncle Beck and tell them what you did." I tell her "They'll be so proud of you!"

* * *

><p>"How's dinner?" Trevor asks me later that night as we sit at the dinner table<p>

We decided to have a late dinner after the kids had gone to sleep, since our go-to babysitters Beck and Jade had Valentine's Day plans of their own. I offered to cook dinner, but Trevor told me to just give the kids their baths and put them to sleep, and that he would take care of it. Since apparently I 'always cook'. Which I guess is true.

When I came downstairs, wearing a bright red cocktail dress, he had candles set up all over the table, covered in a white table cloth. He wore the same outfit from this morning, but with a suit coat this time as well.

Now we sit at the table enjoying the dinner he made, Filet Mignon covered in Mushroom-Wine sauce, along with our glasses of red wine.

"I love you." He smiles at me randomly

"I love you too." I say getting up and sitting down on his lap, kissing him softly "Thanks."

"For what?"

"Dinner, candles, wine..." I tell him "The song this morning..."

"Anything for my superstar." He kisses me again "And you know how much I love to sing to you."

"Funny though, cause I'm the singer." I smirk "Let me sing to you now..."

"Okay." He smiles

"_You think I'm pretty, without any makeup on. You think it's funny, when I tell the punchline wrong_." I begin to sing to him "_I know you get me, so I let my walls come down_."

"_Before you met me_

_I was alright but things_

_Were kinda heavy_

_You brought me to life_

_Now every February_

_You'll be my Valentine, Valentine.._."

He's started kissing my neck, rather hard too, I'll probably have some hickies in the morning. I take his hand and lead him out of the dining room and into the living room. Still singing the entire way, as we try to keep our hands off each other.

"_Let's go all the way tonight_

_No regrets, just love_  
><em>We can dance, until we die<em>  
><em>You and I, will be young forever<em>..."

"Damn straight we will be." He whispers too me as he shoves me down onto the couch, yanking his tie off and unbuttoning his shirt.

"_You make me feel_

_Like I'm livin' a_  
><em>Teenage dream<em>  
><em>The way you turn me on<em>  
><em>I can't sleep<em>  
><em>Let's run away and<em>  
><em>Don't ever look bac-<em>"

He cuts me off when he starts pulling my dress over my head.

I decide to stop singing, I've got much better things to be doing.


	30. Chapter 30

_Ruby's POV_

"Rube." Trevor chuckles "Check out Livy."

I follow his point to see my daughter looking over Violet, who lays on her back on a blanket in the middle of Beck and Jade's living room.

"She fascinated by her." Beck observes

Trevor sits with his arm around my waist on one couch, Jade sits on Beck's lap on the couch opposite from us. Aaron, Jonah and Olivia crawl around on the floor between us, Violet lays on her blanket, and Sophie is somewhere upstairs.

"Maybe that's her way of telling you she wants one." Jade smirks

" . You're funny." I tease her "I have three kids under one year, no way in hell am I having another kid right now."

"Well..." Trevor shrugs

"No!" I exclaim and slap his shoulder

"Alright alright." He laughs "Oh hey! I have announcement!"

"Trevor!" Jade gasps "Are you pregnant?"

"Oh god I hope not." I laugh "What up babe?"

"You're funny Jade." He rolls his eyes "Anyway, guess who's number four on People's 'Hottest 25 Under 25' list?"

"Justin Bieber?" I tease him, earning me one of his death glares "I'm kidding. Gee...I don't know...you?"

"Damn straight!" He exclaims

"So your number four?" Beck asks "That means America's teenage female population thinks there's three guys under the age of twenty-five more attractive than you?"

"Excuse me!" Trevor gasps, pretending to be offended "I don't see your name on the list anywhere!"

"I'm twenty-eight." Beck reminds him

"Haha you're old." Jade teases him

"Your the same age as me." He scoffs

"I'm twenty-seven." She smirks

"Wow a whole five months younger."

"I'll remember that when you turn thirty." She kisses him

"Mhm."

"So they're gonna feature you in the magazine?" I ask, returning the conversation to it's original topic

"Yup!" He smiles "And they did an interview with me for the website."

"Oh we gotta watch this!" Beck exclaims, getting up to retrieve his laptop

"What kind of interview?" I ask

"It honestly reminded me of one of your PopTiger things." Trevor shrugs "No big deal."

"It's totally a big deal!" I tell him as Beck walks back into the room

"Which magazine did you say it was?" He asks

"People."

"It's right there." Jade points as Trevor and I get up to sit on the other couch with Beck and Jade

_"Hello and welcome to People Online." The interviewer smiles "I'm Maxine Walsh, here with our number four hottest guy under twenty-five, Mr. Trevor Samuels!"_

_The camera turns and Trevor is shown sitting in the chair across from the interviewer._

_"Welcome Trevor." She tells him "Thanks for talking to us."_

_"Well thank you for having me." He smiles_

"Aw you're so polite." I kiss his cheek

"Yeah yeah." He rolls his eyes, and we go back to watching the interview

_"So Trevor. You're different from most guys on our list. You're one hundred percent off the market. Right?"_

_"That's correct." He grins "Been married two and a half years."_

_"And most teenage girls are very jealous of your wife Ruby. You're apparently very popular with the ladies."_

_"Sorry ladies." He shrugs towards the camera "I'm off the market permanently."_

_"So I have a list of questions here that readers have sent in, we'll try to get through as many as we can in two minutes? Sound okay?"_

_"Sounds fine to me."_

_"What's your favorite color?"_

"Original." Jade laughs

"It's red." I say

_"Red." Trevor smiles on screen._

_"What's the best quality a girl can have?"_

_"She has to be one hundred percent comfortable with my awkwardness." He chuckles "Because I can be pretty awkward at times."_

Jade raises an eyebrow at me. I shrug, maybe when we first started dating, but not now.

"_Celebrity best friend?"_

_"Beck Oliver." Trevor chuckles "He's actually my brother-in-law."_

_Beck pumps his fist in the air and then fist bumps Trevor._

"Omg best friends forever!" Jade says in an annoying voice

"_Advice for someone on their first date?"_

_"Don't lie." Trevor shakes his head "You don't want to build a relationship on lies. Be honest from the start."_

_"Advice to guys who might want to potentially date your daughter, Olivia, one day?"_

_"Give up." Trevor says seriously "She's not dating until she's married, so sorry."_

Jonah starts to whine at my feet, slapping my shins with one of his hands, demanding attention.

"Hey baby." I smile and pick him up, sitting on my lap "Wanna watch with us?"

Jonah stares at the screen intently for a few seconds before

"DADA!" He giggles and points at the screen

"YES!" Trevor exclaims, jumping up, almost knocking the laptop over "YES YES YES! RUBY OWES ME TWENTY BUCKS!"

"I've sold _millions_ of albums." I roll my eyes "I can afford to give you twenty bucks."

"Care to explain?" Jade asks

"We put twenty bucks on each kid for them to say our name first." I explain

"And Jonah just won for _me_!" Trevor smiles, picking the baby up off my lap

"It's not a big deal." I roll my eyes "Aaron. Olivia. You better say 'mommy' first!"

"Come on Jonah. Do it again." Trevor begs "Dada! Dada!"

"DADA!" The baby giggles again

"YES!" Trevor cheers, throwing the baby up and catching him, bringing on an uncontrollable giggle fit from our son.

"Maybe we should put money on Vi..." Beck shrugs

"Absolutely not." Jade tells him

"Okay."

"I've got to tweet this!" Trevor exclaims and runs away to find his phone

"I think we're done." Beck closes the laptop

"Yeah he'll be on a cloud for the rest of the night." I sigh

"One of them has to say 'Mom' first..." Jade assures me "Sophie did."

"Sophie said 'Trevor' first technically." I remind her "And they'll say 'Dad' if they hear Jonah saying it."

"Not necessarily."

"Check out twitter." Beck chuckles, scrolling through his feed

I pull my phone out and unlock it, sure enough, there's Trevor's tweet. Along with a video of Jonah saying 'Dada' over and over again and giggling hysterically.

**TrevorEthanSamuels**: _Lil Guy made Daddy proud today #jonah #firstword #takethatruby_


	31. Chapter 31

_Ruby's POV_

"Miss Sophie Marie..." I sigh "Come eat or you don't get to watch Mom and Dad on TV."

"But the lady said they'll be on after the commercials!" Sophie whines from the living room

"You better hurry up then!" I tell her

"Fine." She groans and makes her way to the table where her fruit loops are waiting.

Beck and Jade flew to New York last night so they could be on the morning show 'Wake Up USA' this morning, leaving Trevor and I with Sophie and Violet for the night. When Sophie gets out of school this afternoon, we (including the triplets) will fly out to New York to meet them and take a mini family vacation for the weekend.

"Trevor!" I call to my husband who is still sitting in the living room "A little help, please?"

"Sorry!" He jumps up and comes to the kitchen "Whatcha need?"

"Wanna feed the boys?" I smile, holding up two jars of baby food

"Aw come on." He groans "I fed two at once yesterday!"

"And then I fed two at once at dinner." I remind him, placing the jars in his hands "Thank you."

Olivia begins to fuss in her high chair and throws one of her teething rings onto the floor.

"Just a second baby!" I coo, pulling a chair up close to her "Mommy's coming, don't worry."

Thankfully, Violet is still sleeping, otherwise this would be extremely interesting.

"Hello!" A voice from the TV says "Welcome back to Wake Up USA!"

Sophie grins and begins to stand up, put stops when I point at her and slowly sinks back into her chair and continues eating her breakfast. Trevor reaches over and grabs the remote to turn on the TV in the kitchen we almost never use. The screen lights up and the morning anchor's bright and smiling face lights up the screen.

"Here with me today we have one of America's most popular celebrity couples, Jade and Beck Oliver!"

"Mom and Dad!" Sophie exclaims "Aunt Ruby look!"

"I see them." I smile and continue feeding Olivia

"How are you guys this morning?" The anchor asks

"We're good." Beck tells her "There's something we need to do real quick before the interview starts though."

"And what would that be?"

"Hi Sophie! Hi Violet!" Jade waves towards the camera and blows a kiss in that general direction, which Sophie 'catches' in her hand and presses to her cheek "Hope you're having fun with Aunt Ruby, you better be behaving. Love you! Miss you! See you real soon!"

"How sweet." The anchor chuckles

"And Sophie, it's time for school now okay? Go get ready." Beck adds quickly

"Okay, Dad!" Sophie rolls her eyes and hops down from her chair.

She brings her bowl to the sink and starts walking towards the front door to out her shoes and jacket on, stopping to give me a kiss on the cheek on the way.

"I assume you'll want to watch this?" Trevor raises an eyebrow at me

"Please." I tell him

"No problem." He smiles, getting up and giving me a quick peck on the lips "Be right back. ALRIGHT SOPH! WHO'S READY TO GO TO SCHOOL!"

"MEEEE!" Sophie squeals

I chuckle as he helps her finish getting ready and then the two of them leave together, I then turn my attention back to the screen.

"So you two have had quite a year..." The anchor smiles "Beck you starred in Borderline, playing Dustin Summers. And Jade, you actually wrote the script for that movie, correct?"

"That's correct, yes." Jade grins

"Did you know your husband would be starring when you wrote the movie?"

"Not really." Jade shrugs "While I was writing Dustin's character, I told Beck that he should audition when the time rolled around, I thought it would be a good fit and I guess..."

"Let's just say she thought right." Beck smiles, putting an arm around her

"But that wasn't all that happened to you this year though...I understand you welcomed a new baby back in November?"

"That's right, Miss Violet Kaitlyn Oliver was born on November fifth." Beck tells her

A picture of Violet just after she was born appears on the screen.

"Look guys," I chuckle as the babies all look in different directions "Cousin Violet."

"She's adorable." The anchor coos "Now I don't mean to move this along so quickly but we only have so much time for your segment and there's a topic we still need to touch..."

The three of them laugh.

"But out of all seriousness, Jade, in the past month or so you and your sister, Ruby Samuels, have caught the attention of almost everybody in the nation..." The anchor says with a high amount of concern in her voice "I'm assuming everybody at home knows what I'm talking about, and I know you do too. So I want to ask the question everybody wants answered...why didn't you say anything?"

"We didn't want the constant reminder." Jade sighs "It was this really deep personal issue that we both struggled with for years, and we had managed to learn to cope with it. But when Morgan Cross approached us about possibly becoming advocates for the APSAC, we talked about it and we decided that our experience was part of who we were, you know? It wasn't something we should erase, as much as we want to, because it's part of what makes us...us."

"One day your kids are going to read about this on the internet...or hear about it from someone at school. What's your plan when one of them comes asking questions?"

"We're going to tell them the truth." Beck tells her "It's out there now, there's no use in trying to cover it up for them. The answer we give them will depend on how old they are. Sophie has heard a little about it and asked a couple questions...we basically have told her that Mom's real dad wasn't a very nice to her and Aunt Ruby, to anybody really, but that he's not around anymore. There's no need for her to know all of the...disturbing details right now. If she still wants to know more in a few years then we'll tell her."

"So sorry, but we've hot our time limit. Ladies and gentlemen...Beck and Jade Oliver."

* * *

><p>"Wow you really do not like flying, do you baby girl?" I sigh as I rock Violet back and forth, walking up and down the isle of our jet.<p>

"At least they've gotten over it..." Trevor gestures to our three sleeping babies in their carseats

I guess after a few months of touring the world with Mom and Dad they've adapted to flying.

"How is she sleeping through this?" I laugh, looking at Sophie who is passed out in her seat

"It's called 'she's nine, wearing headphones, and it's eleven o'clock at night'." Trevor chuckles

Violet continues to scream and I can only imagine if my kids were awake and just as uncomfortable...the exact reason why I tell Trevor we're not ready for another kid just yet.

"Violet, baby girl...it's okay." I whisper

"Try this..." Trevor suggests, handing me one of her bottles

"I already tried." I hand it back to him "She wouldn't take it."

"Try again?" He shrugs and gives it back

"Fine." I groan and sit down in the seat next to him "Here baby girl, want your bottle?"

Reluctantly, Violet begins sucking on the bottle calming her slightly.

"Song to her." Trevor adds

"I was getting there." I laugh "What song should I sing, baby girl?"

"The song you sang to Sophie last night!" Trevor exclaims, bouncing in his seat "Sing that one!"

"Are you five?" I ask him

"And a half!" He adds

I roll my eyes.

"_Your hand fits in mine_

_Like it's made just for me_

_But bear this in mind_

_It was meant to be_

_And I'm joining up the dots with the freckles on your cheeks_

_And it all makes sense to me_

_I know you've never loved_

_The crinkles by your eyes_

_When you smile_

_You've never loved_

_Your stomach or your thighs,_

_The dimples in your back at the bottom of your spine_

_But I'll love them endlessly_

_I won't let these little things slip out of my mouth_

_But if I do_

_It's you_

_Oh, it's you they add up to_

_I'm in love with you_

_And all these little things_

_You can't go to bed without a cup of tea_

_And maybe that's the reason that you talk in your sleep_

_And all those conversations are the secrets that I keep_

_Though it makes no sense to me_

_I know you've never loved_

_The sound of your voice on tape_

_You never want_

_To know how much you weigh_

_You still have to squeeze into your jeans_

_But you're perfect to me_

_I won't let these little things slip out of my mouth_

_But if it's true_

_It's you,_

_It's you they add up to_

_I'm in love with you_

_And all these little things_

_You'll never love yourself half as much as I love you_

_And you'll never treat yourself right, darling, but I want you to._

_If I let you know I'm here for you_

_Maybe you'll love yourself like I love you, oh._

_And I've just let these little things slip out of my mouth_

_'Cause it's you,_

_Oh, it's you,_

_It's you they add up to_

_And I'm in love with you_

_And all these little things_

_I won't let these little things slip out of my mouth_

_But if it's true_

_It's you,_

_It's you they add up to_

_I'm in love with you_

_And all your little things._.."

"I remember when you would sing that to Sophie when _she_ was a baby." Trevor smiles, stroking Violet's face with his thumb "It always made her so happy."

"Not as happy as Jade's singing would." I sigh "But babies do tend to love the sound of their mother's voice... I love little babies like this."

"Well then let's have another one!"

"Oh you want a baby?" I raise an eyebrow at him

He nods.

"Kay well you have _three_ asleep in car seats over there." I laugh and point "And they're all under a year old. I think we're okay for now."


	32. Chapter 32

_Jade's POV_

"Dad look!" Sophie exclaims as she lets go of Beck's hand and takes off running "The leopard!"

"Has she never seen a leopard before?" Ruby chuckles

Today, on the last full day of our New York weekend, we decided to take the kids to Central Park Zoo. Trevor pushes Jonah and Olivia in a double stroller, Ruby carries Aaron in a baby Bjorn. I wear a baby Bjorn as well, carrying Violet.

"She sees them whenever we go to the Los Angeles Zoo." I shrug "I don't know why she's so excited."

"The ones at home are _orange_, Mom!" Sophie rolls her eyes "This one is white!"

"Yup, this one is a snow leopard." Beck points to the sign on the glass "They have white fur instead of orange."

"Woah." Sophie gasps, nose pressed to the glass

"Pretty cool, huh?" Trevor chuckles, appearing next to us.

"Yeah." Sophie smiles "Dad can I get one?"

"Sure." Beck shrugs

"What!?" I exclaim, shooting Beck a look

"A stuffed one." He quickly corrects himself

That's a little better.

"Holy shit!" A voice behind us exclaims "It's you guys!"

I turn around to see a group of three teenage girls staring at us in awe.

"Language please." Ruby says quickly "I don't want my kid's first word to be an explicative."

"Sorry." One of them blushes, I'm assuming the one who recognized us originally "Can we take a picture with you?"

"Sure." Ruby smiles "Just me or everybody?"

"Oh my god!" Another girl exclaims "All of you? If we can, please!"

"Sure." I laugh "We don't mind. As long as you don't care Violet is asleep."

"That's fine." The girl says nervously

I didn't realize we could make fans _this_ nervous.

Trevor turns the stroller around so Jonah and Olivia can be seen in the picture, and the girls scatter themselves between us. One of them hands her phone to a zoo worker who had been nearby and he snaps a picture.

"Put that up on twitter and tag me in it, kay?" Ruby smiles

"Sure." The girls exclaim and scatter away

"Why do you always say that?" I ask

"I have an entire album of pictures with fans on my phone." She tells me "I like adding to my collection."

"She does." Trevor agrees

"Excuse me?" A man nearby with two young girls, presumably his daughters, tries to grab our attention "Can they have a picture too?"

"Sure." Beck tells him

"Us too?" A teenage couple asks

"Why not." I shrug

Before we know it, crowds have started to gather and a line has formed. Everybody trying to get a picture with 'Entertainment's First Family' as one boy referred to us. Which I personally think is a little too _weird_ for my liking, but someone said it so I'm sure it will be trending within the hour.

"Mom." Sophie whines and leans against me "How many more pictures do_ I _have to take? I wanna go get my snow leopard!"

"I'm sorry baby, only a few more." I assure her

I often forget how much of an affect our fame has on her too.

"Hey." A security guard says, appearing behind us "You guys okay? Need anything? Want some of my guys to stand nearby?"

"Actually..." Beck hesitates for a second "Can you help us get out of here? Jade and Ruby have somewhere they need to be later on..."

"Sure." He nods "OKAY EVERYBODY THATS IT! NO MORE PICTURES! IM SORRY!"

The room is full of sighs of disappointment from parents and 'awwww's from little kids.

"SORRY EVERYBODY!" Ruby yells above the crowd "ITS GETTING CLOSE TO DINNER TIME AND AFTER DINNER COMES BEDTIME FOR THE KIDS!"

The security guard leads us through a 'staff only' door so we can get around the crowds easier and not cause a scene getting out.

"Excuse me, sir?" Beck speaks up

"Yes Mr. Oliver?"

"Call me Beck, please. Mr. Oliver is my father." Beck blushes "And would you mind taking us out through the gift shop? I promised my little girl a stuffed snow leopard."

"Not a problem." He smiles

* * *

><p>"IM FLYING HIGH! DEFYING GRAVITY! AND SOON ILL MATCH THEM IN RENOWN! Ruby screams as she runs down the practically deserted New York street "AMD NOBODY IN ALL OF OZ! NO WIZARD THAT THERE IS OR WAS! IS EVER GONNA BRING MEEEEEEE DOWN!"<p>

We may or may not have gone to see Wicked tonight. We also may or May have not gone to a bar afterwords. Now she may or may not be drunk.

"Jesus Christ." I mutter under my breath "RUBY! GET BACK HERE! WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO IF THE PAPARAZZI SHOW UP?"

"OH PLEASE!" She yells back "THE ENTIRE WORLD ALREADY KNOWS ABOUT OUR DADDY ISSUES HOW MUCH WORSE CAN IT GET?"

"A LOT WORSE ACTUALLY!" I yell as I jog to catch up to her.

I picked the _wrong_ night to wear heals. That's for sure.

"Ruby!" I pant as I catch up to her "Please. Just _shut up_!"

"What are you? My _mom_?" She laughs and stumbles to the side a bit "Woah I almost fell over!"

"Well you know..." I chuckle, putting my arm around her to keep her upright "I have a legal document from the state of California saying that I _technically_ am your legal guardian. So in a way I'm still like your mom."

"Not my real one!" She taps the tip of my nose with her finger "Haha!"

"Whatever, Rube." I roll my eyes as we turn the corner and start approaching our hotel

"Hello, Miss Jade." The doorman tips his hat towards me "Miss Ruby."

"Hiiiii." Ruby giggles

"Hi." I smile as he opens the door for us "Thank you."

We cross the lobby and start heading towards the elevators. Thank god it's almost two in the morning and there's no paparazzi crowding the hotel like usual.

I lean forward to hit the 'up' button, and Ruby almost falls over when I let go of her just a little.

"Woaaaaah." She sways

"You're officially grounded from girl's night for a very long time." I sigh as the doors open

"That's no fair!" She pouts

"You're right it's not. You're grounded from alcohol though."

She's already moved on and is staring at the mirror on the ceiling of the elevator.

"It's so shiny! Jade! Look! _Shiny_!"

"Uh huh..."

The doors open on the 24th floor and I pull her out into the hall and start making my way to her and Trevor's room. When we arrive, I begin pounding my fist against the door, not even caring about waking the babies at this point.

"You're so pretty, Jade." Ruby sighs, twisting one of my curls around her finger

"Thank you." I sigh, a little past annoyed at this point

"What the hell!" Trevor exclaims when he opens the door "Jade!? You're gonna wake the kids up!"

"Take your wife!" I shove her towards him

"Hiii honey!" She slurs and falls into his arms

"Holy- is she drunk?" He asks

"Oh _yes_." I laugh and turn on my heel, walking towards my room.

Apparently I leave just in time too, because as I slide my card into the door, I hear Ruby throw up down the hall.

_Poor Trevor._


	33. Chapter 33

**A lil on the short side, I'm sorry. **

* * *

><p><em>Ruby's POV<em>

"Aunt Ruby!" Sophie exclaims "Do you wanna watch Frozen on Daddy's PearPad with me?"

"Sophie." I groan "Please. I just want to sleep."

"Okay." Sophie frowns and walks back to her seat

"Come on, Rube." Trevor sighs "She just wants to watch a movie."

"I have a headache!" I tell him "Please just leave me alone!"

"Alright whatever, superstar."

I put my sleep mask back on and put my headphones back in, leaning my head against the pillow I have propped up against the window of the plane.

I don't think I've been this hungover since the morning after my 21st birthday. It's terrible and it sucks. I sort of hate Jade for letting me drink so much, but according to her, she tried to stop me several times, but I kept fighting back. Eventually I gave in and let her take me back to the hotel. Where I threw up all over my husband.

For some reason everyone seems sympathetic to me though. Jade, even though I was a pain in the ass the entire way from the bar to the hotel. Trevor, even though I threw up all over him and he had to help me change my clothes. Beck, even though he was no part of it and was sleeping the entire time.

I can't help but think that subconsciously I was trying to drink away the stress of the whole situation that I've fallen into the past few months. It was never my intent, I only wanted to go out and have a good time with my sister, but maybe that's what it turned into.

That was only the second time I've been drunk in my life. I promised myself I wouldn't turn into my father, drunk all the time, taking my own problems out on my kids because I'm too far under the influence to see what I'm doing to them. I never want my kids to see me the way I saw my father.

I feel so ashamed.

I start to wonder what my mother would think, if she'd be ashamed or if she'd tell me that I was just having fun and that it happens. I honestly don't know what she would think, which just reminds me exactly how little I actually know about my mother, and how long she's been gone.

I brush a tear from my eye and turn the volume up on my PearPod.

_I drive your truck_

_I roll every window down_

_And I burn up_

_Every back road in this town_

_I find a field, I tear it up_

_Til all the pain's a cloud of dust_

_Yeah, sometimes I drive your truck_

_I've cussed, I've prayed, I've said goodbye_

_Shook my fist and asked God why_

_These days when I'm missing you this much_

_I drive your truck_

_I roll every window down_

_And I burn up_

_Every back road in this town_

_I find a field, I tear it up_

_Til all the pain's a cloud of dust_

_Yeah, sometimes, brother sometimes_

_I drive your truck_

_I drive your truck_

_I hope you don't mind, I hope you don't mind_

_I drive your truck_

"RUBY!" Someone yells to me "RUBY!"

I jolt upright in my seat and tear my mask off

"What?!" I exclaim, pulling my headphones out of my ears

Trevor sits in the seat across the isle from me, bouncing Olivia on his lap.

"Come on baby girl, say it again!" He coos "Say it for Mommy! I know you can!"

"What did she say?" I ask

"Just wait for it..." He smiles "Come on, Livy! Mmmmma-ma!"

"Mama!" The baby giggles and claps her hands together

"You have to give my twenty bucks back." I grin, standing up to take my daughter from him "Say it again, Livy. Who am I? Mmmmma-ma!"

"Mama!" She laughs and snuggles her head into my chest

"Yeah." I grin "Yeah I'm Momma."


	34. Chapter 34

Ruby's POV

"Aaron, buddy. Come on you're the last one!" I coo to my son as we sit on the floor in the living room, playing with toys "You can do it! Come on, we can't let Daddy win can we? Mmmma-mmmma!"

Trevor had a few meetings to attend today, leaving me home with the babies by myself.

"Mama!" Olivia exclaims and crawls up next to me, putting her head in my lap

"That's my name!" I smile "Wanna teach your brother how to say it?"

The doorbell rings, so I stand up to answer it.

"We'll work on it bud." I wink and move towards the door.

When I open the door, Jade is standing there, holding Violet's car seat in one hand, a cardboard box tucked under her other arm.

"Hey." I greet her "Wasn't expecting you guys today."

"Sorry." She apologizes "I just...I found...can we come in?"

"Sure."

I move to the side and let her enter the house.

"Is everything okay?" I ask as she sets the car seat and box down and shrugs off her coat "Where's Sophie?"

"It's Tuesday. Sophie is at school." She says like it's the most obvious thing in the world "And everything's fine, I just...this box. I want to show you what's in it."

"What is it?" I ask picking it up made examining it she she lifts Violet out of her seat "It looks old."

"Well it's old, but not that old." Jade laughs "Do you have a VCR?"

"In the basement..." I shrug as we start walking toward the living room "We never use it though, I don't even know if it even works. If you're willing to wait until they go down for a nap we can check it out? It'll actually only be another twenty minutes or so..."

"Jade!" Aaron exclaims as we enter the room

"Hey lil man." She smiles "Wait...I didn't know he could talk..."

"I didn't know he could either..." I smile and bend down to pick him up "Really, Aaron Trevor? I've been trying for days to get you to say 'Mommy' or something of the sort, and you say 'Jade'?"

"Told you he loves me." Jade smirks and sits down on the couch "However, I was honestly expecting the first 'Jade' to come from Olivia."

"Why?"

"Uh hello?" She laughs "She's named after me?"

"Whatever." I roll my eyes "Come on goobers, it's nap time."

* * *

><p>"So where did you find this?" I ask as I pull the old VHS tape out of it's box<p>

It has 'Ruby & Jade: 03-17-08' written on the side in a familiar slanted handwriting.

"When we left Dad's..." She sighs "Actually, when Mom died, I grabbed it out of the basement, I had no clue what was even in it, but I figured it would be something material of theirs for us to have with us...you know besides the locket..."

Mom had a favorite locket she always wore, with pictures of me and Jade in it, and eventually Caleb. When she died, Jade made sure to find it. We always argued over who would get to keep it, eventually we just broke it in half, she kept one half, and I put the other on another chain and kept it for myself. I used to wear it everyday, so did Jade. But I rarely wear mine now, out of fear of something happening to it. It holds a special spot in the center of my jewelry box though, next to my engagement and wedding rings. So I see it everyday when I put them on.

"Anyway..." She continues "When we left Dad's, I made sure we brought it with us. It came from house to house with us...I promised myself I wouldn't open it until I was 21...but I forgot I had it until I was cleaning this morning, and when I opened it, I found out it wasn't anything that was really hers, it was us."

"How many are there?" I ask as I grab the VCR remote and sit down on the couch next to her

"Six or seven I think." She shifts on the couch uncomfortably "Jeez what even is this couch?"

"It's one of Derek and Serena's from their first apartment..." I tell her "It's the 'crap couch', this was intended to be a play space for the kids, but when you have baby triplets, toys just end up where they end up. Can we watch this now, please?"

"Yeah, hit play." She tells me "I have no idea what this is! I haven't looked at them."

I hit the play button on the remote and the video appears on the screen. If the date on the tape is correct, I'm nine, and Jade is twelve. We're in out living room at Mom and John's house. I wear a bright pink tutu and leotard and plastic sunglasses. Jade wears a normal outfit, but has a yellow feather boa wrapped around her neck.

"_Ruby!" Little Jade groans "Stop goofing around or I'm not doing this!"_

_"But I'm so excited!" I smile and run up next to her_

_"What are you guys up to?" John asks from behind the camera_

_"We're gonna have a concert!" I grin and bounce up and down_

_"Except she won't stop moving!" Jade rolls her eyes_

_"Come on Jade," the camera pans over to my mother "Be nice to your sister."_

"Oh my gosh." I gasp

"Mom..." Jade sighs

_"Whatever." Little Jade rolls her eyes_

_"Before we get this concert started..." John laughs "Tell everybody how old you are!"_

_"Nine and a half!" I smile "I'm almost ten!"_

_"I'll be thirteen next month." Jade tells him "I'm in seventh grade."_

_"Ruby what's gonna happen a few months after your birthday?" John asks_

_"Mom is gonna have a baby!" I jump up and down_

"Spastic much?" Jade laughs

"Shhh!" I shush her

_"Do you girls think the baby is a boy or a girl?" Mom asks us_

_"A boy." Jade smirks "Or at least I hope so, I already have a sister, I need a brother now."_

_"I want another sister!" I smile "Then I'll have a little sister AND a big sister!"_

_"Can we please just do this already?" Jade whines "There's a new episode of the Naked Brothers Band on in an hour and I want to watch it."_

"Wow, Jade." I smirk

"Shut up." She throws pillow at me "We're reliving old memories, not mocking my poor taste in children's shows."

_"Okay we'll hurry up so Jade can watch her show." John laughs "Whatcha guys gonna sing?"_

_"You'll see." I smile and press a button on my Hello Kitty boom box_

_The younger versions of Jade and I exchange a glance with each other and start singing_

_"To the left, to the left_

_Everything you own in the box to the left_

_In the closet that's my stuff, yes_

_If I bought it please don't touch_

_And keep talking that mess, that's fine_

_But could you walk and talk at the same time?_

_And it's my name that's on that Jag_

_So go move your bags_

_Let me call you a cab_

_Standing in the front yard telling me_

_How I'm such a fool, talking about_

_How I'll never ever find a man like you_

_You got me to say:_

_You must not know 'bout me_

_You must not know 'bout me_

_I could have another you in a minute_

_Matter fact he'll be here in a minute, baby_

_You must not know 'bout me_

_You must not know 'bout me_

_I can have another you by tomorrow_

_So don't you ever for a second get to thinking you're irreplaceable_

_So go ahead and get gone_

_And call up that chick and see if she's home_

_Oops, I bet ya thought that I didn't know_

_What did you think I was putting you out for?_

_Because you was untrue_

_Rolling her around in the car that I bought you_

_Baby drop them keys_

_Hurry up before your taxi leaves_

_Standing in the front yard telling me_

_How I'm such a fool, talking about_

_How I'll never ever find a man like you_

_You got me to say:_

_You must not know 'bout me_

_You must not know 'bout me_

_I could have another you in a minute_

_Matter fact he'll be here in a minute, baby_

_You must not know 'bout me_

_You must not know 'bout me_

_I'll have another you by tomorrow_

_So don't you ever for a second get to thinking_

_you're irreplaceable_

_So since I'm not your everything_

_How about I'll be nothing, nothing at all to you_

_Baby I won't shed a tear for you, I won't lose a wink of sleep_

_'Cause the truth of the matter is replacing you is so easy..."_

The baby monitor on my hip starts making noise

"I just put them down!" I groan and get up

"Wait this one isn't over yet!" Jade exclaims

"Keep watching!" I tell her "I'll be right back!"


	35. Chapter 35

_Ruby's POV_

"Come on," Trevor smiles "Would it really be so bad?"

He wraps his arms around me and I rest my head on hits chest as we lay in bed talking.

Well, he's talking. I'm trying to sleep.

"We're not having another baby." I tell him "At least not right now."

"Why not?" He sighs

"Because we already have _three_ sleeping down the hall!" I laugh "And I don't want to have three kids hitting their terrible twos all at once while trying to take care of a _newborn_."

"You wouldn't be doing it alone." He reminds me

"Yes I know." I pick his hand up and press my lips to his knuckles, kissing them "I know I wouldn't be. But we have careers to think about too, you know."

"But you said you wanted to hold off on the third album for a while!"

"Just until the end of the year." I correct him "Not forever."

With as hectic as the past two to three years of my life have been, I wanted to take some time off before I released my third album. One is certainly in the works, but with an album comes a tour, and promotional stuff, and I wanted to be around for my kid's major milestones they'll be hitting soon. They'll always come first.

"Alright well if we were to have another kid, what would you want? A boy or a girl?" He asks "Just hypothetically speaking?"

"Trevor..."

"Come on babe, just answer the question!" He whines

"A girl." I sigh "To even it out. Two boys and two girls."

"I agree with you one hundred percent." He kisses the top of my head "What would you want to name her?"

"I don't want to get you all excited..." I tell him "If I humor you, you'll just want it more."

"If we get to have this conversation I promise I will stop the baby talk for the next six months." He says

"Promise?"

"Promise."

"I don't know." I admit "But I'd want her middle name to be Margret. And for a boy I like Aiden Marcus"

"Margret after your Mom?"

"Yeah..." I tell him "What about you?"

"McKenna Vivian for a girl." He tells me "And Joshua Taylor for a boy."

"I like Joshua Taylor." I smirk "Good job babe."

"Like it enough to try for one?"

"Nope." I laugh "I'm going to keep taking my birth control."

"Damn it was worth a shot." He laughs

We lay in silence for a while, the only sound is the echo of our breathing.

"Trevor?" I whisper

"Hm?"

"I've been having nightmares again."

"I know." He sighs "They wake me up sometimes."

"I'm sorry."

"Don't be!" He assures me "I'm sorry I can't help them stop."

"I knew they'd come back when we released the story...I just can't seem to shake_ his _face out of my head."

"How can I help?" He asks "How can I make it not so bad?"

"Just hold me." I whisper "Hold me tight and never let go."

"I promise I never will." He assures me "Okay?"

"Okay." I nod "Hey babe, one more thing?"

"Anything."

"Wanna sing me to sleep?" I smile

The sound of his voice always gives me a reassuring sense of safety. Whether it be when he's on stage with me, or singing to the kids, or even singing to me.

"Sure. What do you want me to sing?"

"Anything."

"_And I'd give up forever to touch you_

_'Cause I know that you feel me somehow_

_You're the closest to heaven that I'll ever be_

_And I don't wanna go home right now_

_And all I can taste is this moment_

_And all I can breathe is your life_

_When sooner or later it's over_

_I just don't wanna miss you tonight_

_And I don't want the world to see me_

_'Cause I don't think that they'd understand_

_When everything's made to be broken_

_I just want you to know who I am_

_And you can't fight the tears that ain't coming_

_Or the moment of truth in your lies_

_When everything feels like the movies_

_Yeah, you bleed just to know you're alive_

_And I don't want the world to see me_

_'Cause I don't think that they'd understand_

_When everything's made to be broken_

_I just want you to know who I am.._."


	36. Chapter 36

Twitter update from **RubyKaitlyn**:

_ I think it's about time for another Q&A livestream:) What about you guys? I'll go live at 8:00 tonight! And maybe I'll even invite a special guest? Who knows? #Q&AwithRuby_

* * *

><p><em>Ruby's POV<em>

"Hello world" I smile "It's been a few months since I've done one of these. I know boo me. But with the tour and then coming forward with the information I did last month...life has been kinda hectic. But! I'm here now and that's what matters, right? Sooo tweet me using #Q&AwithRuby and let's get started shall we? Oh! And I have a special guest with me! Any guesses?"

I check the feed on the right side of my screen for responses.

_Jade?_

_Trevor!_

_Jade._

_Jade!?_

_Jade? Please be Jade!_

_Aaron, Jonah & Olivia?_

_Sophie!_

_OMG I HOPE ITS YOUR HUSBAND!_

_Is it your sister...?_

"Okay a few of you got it right..." I chuckle "My special guest is..."

"ITS ME!" Trevor says in an Italian accent, appearing in the doorway behind me "Hello Twitterverse!"

"He's a little excited." I whisper as he walks in and sits down next to me

"I love these!" He exclaims "Let's answer questions!"

"Alright." I laugh "You wanna pick one?"

"Yes! Uhhhhhhh..." He scans the feed for questions "Oh that one!"

_What was the last song you listened to?_

"Uhhhh, I was listening to the babies's children's CD on the way home from Jade and Beck's this afternoon..." I think out loud "So unfortunately I think it was Old McDonald..."

"Ruby was singing Cowboy Casanova when she was making dinner." Trevor smiles as he puts an arm around me "It was beautiful."

"Okay you sap." I roll my eyes "Let's see...another question..."

_When are you going on tour again? I saw you in Miami last year and can't wait for you to come back!_

"Aw thank you!" I smile "I'm glad you had fun! But I'm not going on tour again until next year sometime. You know, after the next album. The kids will be a little older then, things will hopefully be easier on us."

"Babe." Trevor grins "Look at that one."

_Will you guys have another baby?_

"Oh lord." I sigh "I don't know yet. Maybe? I don't know. I currently have three babies under one year old. So if we do it probably won't be for a while...Trevor really wants to have one more."

He nods excitedly.

"Except he doe at gave to carry it for nine months and then push it out."

"Hey! If I could, I would!" He offers "And I love you so much for carrying our children and putting your body through that!"

"Mhm."

"I do!" He kisses my cheek, repeatedly "I do! I do! I do!"

_How often do you guys have sex?_

"That's none of your business!" I scoff

"Often enough." Trevor winks

"Trevor!" I shriek and slap his arm "Stop!"

"I'm kidding!" He defends "I would not disclose information like that!"

I give him a look that says 'oh sure'.

"I wouldn't!"

"Yeah okay." I roll my eyes "Let's answer another one..."

_Will you guys sing for us? You both have such beautiful voices!_

"You guys always ask for me to sing." I laugh

"Maybe because your a singer, Rube." Trevor laughs

"Really? I didn't know that!" I gasp "What do you guys want us to sing?"

"What about the song we sang in the showcase senior year?" Trevor suggests "That was a good one."

"I don't know if they'll know it..." I hesitate

"No it's a good song!" He insists "I'll go get my guitar!"

He hops up and jogs out of the room.

"Okay while he does that..." I read through the questions

_Do you ever wonder what your life would be like if your Mom hadn't died?_

I hesitate before answering.

"Truthfully? All the time." I admit "Everything would be different, ya know? Like...if...he hadn't tried to...violate my sister, maybe she wouldn't have felt so vulnerable and sought comfort from Beck. And then maybe Sophie wouldn't have been born when she was...DONT GET ME WRONG! I love my niece! To death! My life would be so different if she hadn't been born when she was. Trevor might not have approached me at Jade and Beck's graduation, and then would we even be together now? We still would've gone to school together...but would we have even talked? I wouldn't have my kids...maybe not even my career! It's scary to think about. But yeah, I do think about it."

_What if Jade hadn't gotten you out? What if you had stayed with your Dad?_

"I don't want to think about that." I sigh "It more than likely would not have ended well for anybody involved. I honestly would have probably ended up on the streets begging for money to buy drugs or something of like that. I don't want to think about it. Let's not talk about it anymore, please."

"I'm back!" Trevor announces "Shall we sing?"

"Are we doing the senior showcase one?" I ask

"Please!" He begs

"Okay." I shrug as he starts to play

*(Ruby is _italics_ and Trevor is **bold** and then when they sing_** together it'll be both**_)*

"**I don't know you**

_But I want you_

_**All the more for that**_

**Words fall through me**

_And always fool me_

**_And I can't react_**

**And games that never amount**

_To more than they're meant_

_**Will play themselves out**_

_**Take this sinking boat and point it home**_

_**We've still got time**_

_**Raise your hopeful voice you have a choice**_

_**You'll make it now**_

_Falling slowly, _

**Eyes that know me...**

_**And I can't go back**_

_Moods that take_ _me_

**And erase me**

**_And I'm painted black_**

**You have suffered enough**

_And warred with yourself_

_**It's time that you won**_

**_Take this sinking boat and point it home_**

**_We've still got time_**

**_Raise your hopeful voice you had a choice_**

**_You've made it now_**

**_Falling slowly sing your melody_**

**_I'll sing along_**

**Oh I'll sing along!**

_Along..._

_**Take this sinking boat and point it home**_

_We've still got timeeeee_"

"I love yoooou." He grins

"I love you too." I kiss him


	37. Chapter 37

_Jade's POV_

I awake from the deep sleep I had fallen into rather abruptly. At first, I'm not sure what woke me, until I turn my head and see that the baby monitor is lighting up and making noise. Violet is awake.

I sit up and rub the sleep from my eyes. The sheets on Beck's side of the bed have been thrown off, and he's nowhere to be seen. That's odd. He's never up before me.

I pull on a hoodie as I wander out into the hallway and towards Violet's nursery.

"Mommy's here baby!" I coo as I enter the room "Good morning sweetheart!"

She smiles when she sees me, which makes me smile too. I pick her up and cuddle her close for a few seconds before putting her down on the changing table to change her diaper.

"Did you sleep well, baby girl?" I ask her "You must have! Mommy and Daddy didn't have to come get you once last night!"

Violet, now five months old, has just started sleeping through the night and I consider it a blessing.

I'm getting old you know, the more sleep I get, the better.

"What are we gonna wear today?" I sigh as I lift her up and rest her on my hip and walk towards her closet "Let's see...god do you have a lot of purple clothes..."

I guess we can blame Aunt Ruby for that fact.

I settle on white t-shirt with light green and light purple polka dots and matching light purple leggings.

"You know..." I tell the baby as I dress her "Your sister's nursery used to be these colors when she was a baby. Daddy and Uncle Andre spent hours trying to find the right color purple to paint the walls, Mommy and Aunt Ruby walked right in and found it in five minutes."

Violet looks around and kicks her legs, paying no attention to what I'm saying, as usual.

"You wanna wear a headband today?" I ask her "Or do you th-"

There's a loud crashing noise from downstairs. It sounded like someone dropped a box of pots and pans onto the floor in the kitchen. But like they had dropped it from fifteen feet...

"That didn't sound good..." I sigh "Come on, let's go check it out."

I pick up my daughter and carry her with me downstairs, in the direction of the kitchen.

"Sophie Marie." I call "That had better not have been you...!"

I turn the corner into the kitchen and almost scream. There's flour and crushed eggshells everywhere. Batter of some kind is splattered all over the walls and floor, and lots and pans are strewn all over. But right in the middle of it all? Beck and Sophie.

"What the..." I almost say 'fuck', but my children are in the room "What are you two doing!?"

"Don't freak out!" Beck exclaims "It's an easy cleanup!"

"We were just trying to make you breakfast!" Sophie exclaims "Happy Birthday?"

* * *

><p>"Everywhere?" Ruby laughs as I explain the situation to her at dinner later that night<p>

"Everywhere." I sigh "Ceiling, floor, wall, the kid, you name it."

"I'm not the best cook." Beck chuckles

"I know!" Ruby and I say in unison, causing us both to laugh

"Trevor..." Ruby sighs "Take the silverware from Aaron please!"

"It's just a spoon." Trevor assures her as he takes the utensils away from the baby next to him "It's actually kinda cute."

"Yeah it's cute until it's a knife." She reminds him

Olivia, Jonah, and Aaron sit in high chairs (in that order) between Ruby and Trevor, Beck sits next to Trevor, Sophie next to him, then Violet in her high chair, then me, and then we're back to Ruby.

"Mom look!" Sophie exclaims, holding up her Maestro's kid's menu that she's colored in

"Very nice, sweetheart." I smile and take a sip of my wine "Remind me again why we brought five kids to one of the nicest restaurants in Los Angeles?"

"Because it's your birthday." Ruby nudges me "And you're golden birthday at that!"

"We didn't do anything special for your golden birthday." I remind her

"I was also six." She reminds me "Oh! You have to open your present!"

"You didn't have to get me anything." I sigh as she reaches into her purse and pulls out a medium-sized, wrapped box.

"You and I both know that's a lie." She laughs and hands the box to me "Go on. Open it!"

"Now?"

"Yes now!" Trevor insists

I hadn't even noticed he was paying attention to the conversation.

"Okay." I chuckle and start tearing at the paper

In the box is a dark purple Nikon CoolPix camera.

"Holy crap." I smile, turning the camera over in my hands "Thanks guys it's great!"

"Cool. You can use it in the Bahamas." Beck tells me

"What?"

"Happy Birthday." He grins "We leave the day after tomorrow."

"Are you serious?" I ask him

"He sure is." Trevor chuckles "And we're coming with you."

"Really?" I gasp

"Yeah." Ruby smiles "Trevor, Me, You, Beck and all the kids. Happy birthday, sis."

"Oh my god!" I exclaim "Thank you!"


	38. Chapter 38

_Ruby's POV_

"_Wow_." I gasp as we step through the door into our hotel suite in the Bahamas "This is amazing."

"Yeah." Trevor agrees, stepping in behind me "Yeah it really is."

I bend down to take Olivia out of her car seat. Once the babies out grow them I have no idea how we'll transport them, because the stroller is so hard to transport certain places and they probably won't want to walk.

"Check out this view!" I exclaim , running out onto the balcony, taking the baby with me "I can see the ocean!"

"It's beautiful." Trevor smiles, appearing next to me "Just like you."

"Awwww." I blush and kiss him "You're not so bad yourself."

There's a knock at the door, he goes to answer it while I move inside to start unpacking. I set Olivia down and she crawls over to play with her brothers.

"Uncle T!" Sophie exclaims as she runs into our room "You _are_ the room across the hall!"

"Yeah we kinda planned it that way." He chuckles "Have you seen your room yet?"

"Yeah! And it's awesome!" She giggles "Can we go to the pool?"

"I don't know." Trevor shrugs "Ask your Dad."

"He said to come ask _you_..."

"Of course he did..." Trevor sighs "In a little bit okay?"

"Okay!" She smiles and skips out of the room

"That kid..." Trevor grins and closes the door behind her "Never a dull moment."

"Never." I agree, opening one of the pac-n-plays and start setting it up

"Here, let me get that." Trevor offers taking it from me

"You sure?"

"Positive." He smiles and gives me a peck on the lips

"Hey!" One of the babies squeals

I turn around to see Aaron holding Olivia's favorite stuffed bunny, Olivia stunned like she's about to cry, and Jonah confused sitting in the middle.

"Don't cry, don't cry, don't cry!" I whisper under my breath

Sure enough, Olivia breaks out into tears, screaming red-faced at the top of her lungs.

"Aaron Trevor!" I scold as I walk over to them "That's Livy's bunny! You have your lion."

I pick Olivia up and she buries her face in my neck, continuing to cry.

"Sweetie it's okay." I coo as I bend down and take the stuffed animal from her brother "Your bunny is right here."

"Little tornados, those three." Trevor chuckles as he watches from afar "Causing trouble wherever they go."

"I know." I sigh and kiss the top of my daughter's head "But they're my tornados."

"_Our_ tornados." He corrects me

"Yeah." I smile "Our tornados."

* * *

><p>"How do you do that?" Jade groans as I walk out of the bathroom in my new bikini<p>

Trevor and Beck had taken most of the kids down to the pool already, only Jonah remains upstairs with us.

"Do what?" I ask

"That!" She exclaims, I'm still unsure of what she's gesturing to "You had triplets and you look better than you did before you had them! I had one and I still haven't lost all the weight!"

"Oh you look fine." I assure her as I slip on my flip flops.

I really love my new bikini, I bought it especially for the trip. It's a light blue strapless top with a pink botanical print and light blue bottoms. I got to buy swim suits for babies too which got me way more excited than it should have. Aaron got light green, grey, dark grey and white striped swim trunks with a matching white and grey rash guard. Jonah got grey swim trunks with white shark outlines and a teal rash guard. I had the most fun with my baby girl Olivia's though, she got a light blue one piece with a little ruffle along the neckline and is covered in little pink flamingos. They each got a hooded towel too. Aaron a crab in a pirate hat, Jonah a shark, and Olivia a pink flamingo. I could not wait for them to try them on as soon as I got back from the store. Trevor thought I was insane.

"I still don't think it's fair." She pouts, picking Jonah up and pulling him into her lap.

"I've had more recovery time than you." I remind her "They're 10 months, Violet is 5. I also went on a world your between then and now."

"Oh yeah that's right you did do that." She laughs "I forgot."

"Yeah yeah." I stick my tongue out at her, she returns the gesture

And so does my son.

"Jonah Thomas!" I laugh, which causes him to stick his tongue out again

"Your father will love that." Jade tells the baby as he falls into a fit of laughter

"No way he picked it up that quickly." I shake my head "Someone must've been showing him before."

"Probably my husband." Jade rolls her eyes

"Or..."

"_Sophie_." We both say in unison.


	39. Chapter 39

**_I will spare everyone the details but let's just say I have a concussion. My updates are going to slow down a little bit in the next week because i can't stare at my computer screen for very long without getting a headache, so writing new chapters is hard. Sorry! I'll try my best to update when I can. Sorry if this update isn't great, but I'm still not feeling too hot. _**

* * *

><p><em>Ruby's POV<em>

I sit on the balcony of our hotel room, reading my book and watching the sunset.

I've had a pretty relaxing day, which is a nice change of pace for me actually. Jade and I went to the spa this morning while Beck and Trevor watched the kids. Then we spent the day at the beach, we had planned on staying longer than we had, but some wonderful paparazzi showed up, so we returned to our rooms and ended up going for an early dinner. After dinner, Jade and I took our kids back to our rooms, while Beck and Trevor headed off to play golf. They should be back soon.

I can't remember the last time I was able so sit someplace completely quiet and relaxing and just read. The only sound around me is the occasional tropical breeze that blows through the palm trees, and the far off laughter of people enjoying the resort water park.

"Hey." Trevor greets me, stepping through the sliding glass door from the room.

Annnnd the silence is gone.

"Hey." I smile as he gives me a quick peck on the lips

"Where are the kids?" He asks me, sitting down in the chair across from me on the balcony

"Did you miss the three sleeping infants in the pac-n-plays on your way out here?" I chuckle

"Wow." He grins "They're asleep early tonight. That almost _never_ happens."

"Mommy needed some time to herself." I chuckle "It's amazing what you can make happen if you're motivated enough."

"Well you're amazing." He shrugs "You can do anything!"

"What do you want?" I laugh

"Nothing." He shrugs "Just thought you'd like a reminder of how amazing you are."

"Mhm..." I smirk and continue reading my book

"So are you having a good time?" He asks anxiously

"Yes." I laugh "Why?"

"Just wondering." He says "I just wanna make sure you're as happy as possible."

"I'm not ready to have another baby, Trevor." I chuckle

"That's not what I was implying!" He exclaims "I promised you no baby talk for six months, and there will be no baby talk for six months!"

I glance up at him with a face that says 'alright, sure.'.

"There won't!"

"Okay I believe you." I smile and continue reading

"So you like the resort?" He asks

"I think it's amazing." I tell him

"Would you want to come back? Maybe sometime _without_ the kids?"

"I think that'd be nice."

"I love you." He blurts out "I really seriously _love_ you."

"I love you too." I laugh "Trevor Samuels, what has gotten into you? You've been acting weird all day."

"I just...I had a weird nightmare last night okay?" He sighs "It's nothing."

"Obviously it's not nothing if you're this affected by it." I set my book down next to me "You want to talk about it? That usually helps."

This is an odd change of pace, _he's_ usually the one to offer therapy after one of _my_ nightmares.

"I woke up one morning, and you were gone." He tells me "I went to check on the kids, and they were gone too. I freaked out and tried calling you, but you kept sending me to voicemail...you left me."

"Trevor, babe." I sigh, getting up and going over to sit on his lap "It was just a nightmare. I'm not going anywhere. _I love you_."

"Promise?"

"_Promise_." I whisper and begin kissing him softly.

"Good...because I...don't...know...if I can...survive...with...out you." He tells me between kisses

I stop and cup his face in my hands.

"You'll _never _have to." I assure him

"Good." He bites his lip and starts to kiss my neck

I shift myself so I'm straddling his lap and he stands up as I take my turn kissing him. He starts walking towards the door and opens it, stepping through.

I take a break and rest my head on his shoulder as we walk through the living room, so we don't wake the the babies sleeping in there. But once he kicks the bedroom door closed behind him, we're on again.

He throws me down on the bed and crawls on top of me.

"You got to be on top last time..." I pout

"Do you actually care that much?" He chuckles as he pulls his shirt off

"Nah." I smirk "I actually like it better when you're on top."

"Me too." He smiles as I undo the buckle on his belt

"These damn gold clothes." I laugh "Damn do you look_ hot_ in them, but they're so hard to get unfastened."

"Shhhh." He presses a finger to my lips "I've got it from here, just relax okay?"

"Kay." I bite my lip

I'm in for a fantastic night, that's for sure.


	40. Chapter 40

_Ruby's POV_

On our last night at the resort, we decide to spend sometime at the beach, just relaxing. Beck sits in a beach chair, looking over what I can only presume is a new script, mindful of Violet who is asleep in her stroller next to him. Trevor is laying on his back on a beach blanket, listening to music through his headphones, Aaron curled up next to him on his side. Jonah, who has been cranky all evening, is sleeping in his stroller next to them. Meanwhile, Jade accompanies Sophie as she splashes around in the water close to the shoreline. It's cute to watch, they run around and laugh, occasionally Jade will take a picture of Sophie on her new camera, or pick her up and spin her in circles, sending her into a never ending giggle fit.

Me? I sit straddled on the sand, close to the water, just barely close enough that when the tide reaches me it only passes me by about two inches or so. I hold Olivia upright between my legs, lifting her up when a wave reaches us, so it's like she's jumping over them. She laughs hysterically every time, and I realize that my daughter's laugh is one of the most precious sounds in the universe.

"Hey you guys!" Jade smiles, approaching us "Smile!"

I turn and hold Livy so our faces are close and she snaps the picture.

"Tonight on TMZ..." She says in a comical voice as she sits down next to me, handing me a beer from our beach cooler "Mother and daughter enjoy one last relaxing night on a beach in the Bahamas..."

"Ha. Ha." I sneer, pulling my legs together and sitting Livy on my lap "What happened to Soph?"

The baby extends her arms to my sister, so Jade pulls her onto her lap.

"She got tired," Jade shrugs "Beck is gonna take her and Violet back to the room and give them their baths."

"I should probably ask Trevor to do the same..." I sigh

"Way ahead of you." He says, coming up behind me

"Thank you." I smile as he leans down and kisses me

"C'mere baby girl." Trevor extends his arms to her

"No!" Olivia protests and snuggles closer to Jade

"I'll bring her up with me..." I tell him "Just take the boys up."

"Sure." He nods "How long do you think you're gonna be?"

"No more than an hour." I shrug

"Alright." He agrees and leans down to kiss me again "See you then."

"See you then." I repeat "God I can't believe we have to leave this place..."

"I know..." Jade frowns "This really was a great birthday present, thank you."

"Don't thank me, thank your husband." I tell her "It was all him."

"You know what I mean."

"Yeah..." I sigh

We sit in the tide for a while, the only sounds around us are that of the waves rushing in and out, seagulls far in the distance, and the faint sound of music coming from the resort pool a few yards down the beach and behind us.

"It was kinda nice..." I break the silence "Being around just each other, no paparazzi, no annoying reporters, not that many crazy fan attacks..."

"I think it was just the get away we needed." She agrees "Given the circumstances of the past few months..."

"That's why he did it." I tell her, taking a sip of my beer "So we could...get away from it all."

"But now we have to return to reality." She sighs and takes a sip of her own "That sucks."

"You can say that again."

Livy begins to squirm, so Jade hands her back to me. When that doesn't appear to be what she wanted, I sit her in the sand between us. The water rushes up and around her, causing her to squeal and kick her legs, content again.

"The simplest things entertain her." I smile

"Babies can be like that." Jade laughs as my diagnosed begins to hit at my legs

I extend a hand to her and she starts playing with it. Amazed by my queen of hearts tattoo on the inside of my middle finger.

"That's Mommy's tattoo." I tell her "I colored on myself. Don't ever do it, okay?"

"I predict she has one by sixteen." Jade smirks

"No!" I gasp "I'd never let her."

"Well look who's talking now!"

"Whatever." I roll my eyes as Olivia finds my puzzle piece tattoo "Yup there's another one."'

She giggles and sits back down on the sand, her hand brushing the scar from my stab wound on my lower left abdomen. She stops to examine the faded purple blemish.

"That's not a tattoo, sweetie..." I sigh

"Shit." Jade mutters

"Jade..." I sighs "It's been ten years...it's okay."

"I still hate myself for that." She whispers "I shouldn't have let you go home alone".

"It's not your fault." I tell her "He would've gotten one of us either way."

"I was the older sister...I was supposed to protect you."

"Don't beat yourself up. I should be thanking you." I remind her

"No you shouldn't."

"Jade you practically-"

"Raised you." She finishes for me "I know. I know."

"I owe you."

"No you don't."

"Will you at least accept an 'I love you' then?" I smile, nudging her with my shoulder "Hm?"

"Sure." She cracks a grin "I guess that's okay."

"I love yooooou." I chuckle

"Wuv woo." Olivia smiles up at me

"Well I'll be damned." Jade smiles "Go Liv."

"I knew you'd be my little social butterfly!" I exclaim, pulling her onto my lap, laying down and lifting her in the air above me "I did."

"She did." Jade agrees, standing up "Come on, I think we've tortured our husbands long enough."


	41. Chapter 41

_Ruby's POV_

"Children..." I sigh and pull a plastic set of key rings out from under my bed

I throw them into a pile behind me, along with the rest of the toys I've found.

I'm at home by myself with the babies today, so I figured I'd attempt to get some cleaning done during nap time...however, I didn't expect to find an entire toy box worth of my children's possessions under my bed. I make a mental note to set up a baby gate at the door later tonight.

As I reach for a small stuffed elephant (that Aaron has been screaming over the lack of for a good three days at bedtime), my hand brushes what feels like a small, flat, cardboard box. I'm not sure if I really felt or not, so I swipe by the space again, and sure enough I was correct. I decide to pull it out and take a look.

When it surfaces from under the dust ruffle of the bed, I recognize it immediately, and actually debate over whether I should open it or not. In the end, I do.

The first thing I take out is a scrapbook. It contains basically Trevor's and my entire relationship from the time we met up until we graduated high school, I honestly hadn't expected it to last past then.

Obviously I was wrong.

Flipping through it feels like a trip down memory lane. The first page has my ticket to Beck and Jade's graduation glued next to a selfie I took with him that night. Below that, "May 22nd, 2013" is written in my slanted cursive handwriting. That was the day it all began. I continue turning pages, looking at old pictures, we took entirely too many selfies...a habit that unfortunately hasn't changed. When I get to the pictures of the first dance we ever went to, I can't help but laugh. It was Homecoming of our sophomore year. I wear a salmon colored a-lined dress with jeweled embellishments. He wears a matching tie.

We took so many pictures that day, I remember it being more like a photo shoot. We took pictures together, with Beck and Jade, with Sophie, who was only five months old at the time. Jade even framed one of her and I we took that day. (It sat on her desk in her office until I got married and she replaced it with one of the two of us at the reception). My absolute favorite however, was one that I took myself, it was of Trevor, standing with his hands in his pockets, half smiling, half smirking. It would be an adorable picture if Beck wasn't standing in the background, baseball bat raised above his head like he was ready to bash the boy's skull in. Although Beck and Trevor have always gotten along well, Beck still felt he needed to play my father-figure that night, and Jade wouldn't let buy a gun solely to take a funny picture.

I set the scrapbook on the nightstand so I can show my husband later and keep looking through the box. I find a photo album. It has "R.K.W. #1" written on the spine in silver sharpie. I know exactly what this is.

When I switched phones my senior year of high school, I had every picture on my camera roll printed and I put them all in this album, well part of them. There were close to three thousand pictures, so they took up a few albums. The rest are still in the box, but this is number one. The first picture is a picture of my friend Talia and me the night we graduated eighth grade. My father hadn't come to the ceremony, why would he have? But Jade did. She drug Beck and Andre along with her too. The pictures really have no meaning until you hit around number two hundred. That was around the time Jade and I ran away. I see a picture of me, a selfie, laying on what I can only guess is the couch in Beck's RV, left eye purple and swollen shut, but still smiling.

* * *

><p><em>"Did you seriously just take a selfie?" Jade scoffs, having heard the camera sound effect from my phone "Really?" <em>

_Beck had gone inside to grab some things for us, leaving my sister and I alone in the RV. _

_"Yup." I say, popping the p. _

_"Why?"_

_"Documenting evidence." I shrug _

_"For who?"_

_"The police?" _

_"The police aren't going to help us." She laughs "We have no proof." _

_"Uh hello." I point to my black eye "I can lead them straight to the bastard!"_

_"Ruby, you know the rule about the police." She says sternly _

_"I know, I know." I roll my eyes "If we tell them, they'll send us to foster care and we'll get split up, and we can't afford that." _

_"Good girl." She smiles, pulling on one of Beck's hoodies _

_"What if he wants to wear that?" I ask _

_"Look when you get a little older and have your own boyfriend," she chuckles "You'll learn that hoodies are always fair game."_

_"I've had a boyfriend!" I exclaim "Tommy! Remember?"_

_"That only lasted like a month." _

_"Well sorry I can't top your three and a half years." I scoff "Not everybody meets their soul mate when they're fourteen you know." _

_"Yes I know." She laughs _

_Silence. _

_"How long are we gonna stay here?" I finally ask _

_"I honestly don't know..." She sighs "Maybe until I can get a job and save up for an apartment or something..." _

_"I can get a job too!" I offer_

_"No. Ruby you don't have t-"_

_She's cut off when Beck re-enters the RV, carrying a cardboard box and a few brown paper shopping bags. _

_"Alrighty." He says "I dug around in the basement and found some of Lauren's old bedding..." _

_He opens the box and throws a set of bright pink twin sheets, a pillow, and a twin sized comforter that's white with multi-colored polka dots all over it. _

_I start spreading the bedding over the couch cushions while Jade sorts through the bag of toiletries he brought out for us. _

_It's not much of a bed...but it's enough for now. _

* * *

><p>I thought we'd be there a month, two tops. But then Jade got pregnant, and she and the baby had to stay with Beck. And I needed to stay with Jade. So we all stayed together, and we became a family all our own.<p>

"Hey." Trevor greets me from the door

"Hey." I smile and stand up "I thought you weren't coming home until five."

"The guy I was supposed to meet for lunch had to cancel." He shrugs "And I had some time before my meeting with management, so I thought I'd come hang out here with you for a little while."

He leans forwards and presses a quick, but soft kiss to my lips.

"Whatcha lookin at?"

"Found an old scrapbook and some photo albums." I tell him, taking his hand and leading him over to sit on the bed. "Remember this?"

He opens the scrapbook and turns a few pages.

"How can I forget?" He smiles "I still can't believe you kept the movie stub from our first date..."

"It's sentimental to me!" I exclaim "I don't want to forget."

"How could you forget?" He laughs "That was the first night I did this."

He leans forward and kisses me again, a little rougher this time.

"You were a terrible kisser back then." I smirk, draping my arms around his neck

"I was a teenage boy." He rolls his eyes "It's not like I had a whole lot of practice at fifteen. I got better at it."

"Did you?"

"I did!" He scoffs, wrapping his arms around my waist and pushing my backwards so I'm laying on my back on the bed "Let me prove it."

"What time is your meeting?" I ask as he starts kissing my neck

He stops to think.

"2:45."

I glance over at the clock, it reads 1:57.

"We've got time." I shrug

"Yeah." He agrees, kissing me "We've got time."


	42. Chapter 42

_Jade's POV_

"Should I go wake her up?" Beck asks, maneuvering around the kitchen with Violet on his hip

"No!" I exclaim as I set a plate of pancakes down on the table "No I want to do it!"

"You did it last year!"

"No I didn't!"

"Let's just go together." He suggests "It's not every year somebody turns ten."

He's right. Today is Miss Sophie Marie Oliver's tenth birthday.

I nod in agreement and follow him upstairs to Sophie's room.

Her door is cracked open a bit, so Beck pushes it open gently and steps inside.

She's still asleep, laying on her stomach, one arm draped over the edge of her bed, the other clutching her teddy bear.

Beck smirks and nods his head towards the bed, I walk softly across the carpeting, careful not to make any noise, and sit down on the edge of the bed next to my sleeping daughter.

"Sophie, baby girl..." I whisper, brushing a strand of hair out of her face "Wake up. It's a big day."

"Mom?" She yawns, opening her eyes to look at me "Is it time to get up?"

"Yeah." I smile "Do you remember what today is?"

"My birthday." She smiles, rubbing the sleep from her eyes "Does this mean I can open my presents from Aunt Cat now?"

My children are fortunate enough to have not just one, but two pop star aunts. One biological, one not. Cat happens to be touring in Europe this month, and mailed Sophie her presents a few days in advance. Ruby is in town, she Trevor and the kids will be over later tonight, and I expect Tori will be over sometime today too, either by herself or Andre when their son when Andre gets home from work.

"Well you can open them now or you can open them later tonight when Aunt Ruby and Uncle Trevor come are over?"

"Now! Please Mom please?" She begs

"I don't know..." I tease her "What do you think, Dad?"

"I don't care." Beck shrugs "But she has to eat breakfast first."

"Let go eat then!" She exclaims, practically jumping out of bed and running to the kitchen.

"Time flies, huh?" Beck chuckles, grabbing my hand with the one of his that isn't being used to support Violet.

"It sure does..." I agree "It seems like just yesterday a nurse was handing her to me in a little pink blanket."

"I don't miss the crying." He laughs

I have to admit, sometimes I do.

* * *

><p><em>"Shhhhhh Sophie baby it's okay." I whisper to the crying baby in my arms.<em>

_She's been crying for almost 10 straight minutes and I've tried everything. I fed her, change her, everything!_

_"Is she okay?" Beck asks from the doorway._

_"She's fine." I say "She's just cranky."_

_He smiles a half smile and holds his arms out._

_I hand Sophie to him and he tries rocking her for a little while. She quiets down a little buit, but ot enough to put her back to sleep._

_"Go back to bed. I've got this." He says softly and kisses my cheek._

* * *

><p>"Wait what?" Ruby almost chokes on her drink later that night<p>

I had just told her what Cat had sent Sophie for her birthday.

"Not just one either!" I add "Three different ones!"

My friend had never told me what she was getting Sophie for her birthday, which was fine, having no children of her own, she loved spoiling mine. The 'little kid, big kid' Steve Madden boots, leggings, flannel shirt, and Sophie sized beanie hadn't surprised me. The assortment of Sephora pastel hair chalk did. Three colors, pink, purple, and turquoise.

"Maybe she thought she'd take after you?" Ruby shrugs

"I didn't dye my hair until I was fourteen!" I exclaim "She's in fourth grade!"

"For like three more days!" Sophie adds from across the room

"Don't remind me." I roll my eyes

"Ooooh." Ruby raises an eyebrow "Almost to fifth grade, somebody feeling old, Mom?"

"I'm twenty eight!" I snap

"Whatever." She chuckles "Just be happy it was hair chalk and not permanent hair dye. Besides, you can always hide it from her."

"True."

"Did Aunt Tori and Uncle Andre bring anything?" She asks, referencing her manager

"Bright pink surround sound headphones." I say flatly

"So they knew about the present you're getting her then I take it?"

Beck and I had gotten her a PearPod, she hasn't opened it yet, that's for after cake.

"I might've mentioned it to Tori." I sigh "I just don't want her to turn into one of those spoiled child-of-two-celebrities brats, you know?"

"She won't." Ruby assures me "She's got great parents to keep a good head on her shoulders."

"Alright, Sophie!" Beck calls from the kitchen "Cake!"

"Yay!" Sophie exclaims and runs over to him

He sets a zebra-print cake on the kitchen island that says "Happy Birthday Sophie!" On it in pink fondant letters, complete with ten candles.

"Ready?" Beck asks as he helps her climb into on of the chairs at the island

She nods

"Okay everybody..." He tells us "1-2-3!"

"_Happy Birthday to You_

_Happy Birthday to You_

_Happy Birthday Dear Sophie_

_Happy Birthday to You_!" Beck, Trevor, Ruby and I all sing together as Sophie grins

When we finish, she blows all her candles out in one breath.

"Good job, Soph!" I tell her

"Thanks." She blushes

"I love you baby girl." Beck kisses her cheek as he picks up the cake so he can move it somewhere safer to cut.

"I love you too, Daddy." She tells him

"Awww." Ruby coos "Somebody's wrapped around someone's finger..."

"I swear to god Ruby Kaitlyn, if you start singing 'All American Girl' you will be kicked out of this party." I say, shooting my sister a sideways glance

"Ooh Aunt Ruby!" Sophie laughs "Mom full-named you!"

"I wasn't gonna sing!" Ruby exclaims

"That's a lie." Trevor smirks, picking Aaron up off the floor and fastening a bib on him

"I wasn't!"

* * *

><p>"Mom look!" Sophie exclaims, ripping paper off a rather large box from Ruby and Trevor "An electric scooter!"<p>

"Wow." I smile "What do you say?"

"Thank you!" She grins

"You're welcome." Ruby smiles, rocking back and forth as a sleeping Olivia lays against her shoulder "You wanted one of those right?"

"Daddy! Uncle T! Can we put it together?" She asks

"I don't know...it's starting to gets kinda late." He gestures to the sleeping baby boys he holds "Maybe I can come over tomorrow and help."

"Okay." She frowns

"Remember when she was entertained by the simplest things?" I sigh, leaning against Beck's shoulder "Now she has a scooter and hair dye."

"Hair chalk." He corrects me "But yeah, I remember. Those were the good ole' days..."

* * *

><p><em>"Okay this one is from Aunt Tori."<em>

_Sophie tears the paper off and her face lights up immediately._

_"What is it Sophie?" I ask._

_Beck turns the box to reveal a "My Pal Violet" toy._

_"Oh Sophie you've been asking for that!" I gasp_

_"Yay! Tank Wu!" Sophie giggles_

_"You're so so welcome Sophie! I knew you'd been asking Mommy for that!"_

_"Yeah and I didn't buy it for a reason." I inform her_

_She laughs_

_"Oh have fun then."_

* * *

><p>"There's one more present, Soph." I tell her<p>

"Really?" Her face lights up

"Yeah." I laugh "You didn't think Dad and I would forget to buy you something do you? Go check out Vi's swing."

She runs over to the baby swing and pulls the blanket that had been covering her present off.

"That's a pretty small box." Beck says "I wonder what's in it..."

"I don't know." Sophie shrugs and begins tearing at the paper

The pink and white wrapping falls to the floor as my daughter stands staring shocked at the PearCompany box.

"A PearPod!?" She exclaims

"You like it?" I smile

"Yeah!" She giggles and jumps on top of Beck and I "Thank you!"

"You're welcome!" We say in unison and kiss the sides of her face.

* * *

><p>"I cannot believe she's ten." I whisper as Beck and I tiptoe out of Sophie's room that night, closing the door behind us "She's so old."<p>

"But we're not." He smiles, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me towards him

"Yeah yeah." I roll my eyes "Teen parents. I remember."

"Hey. Don't be like that." He strokes the side of my face "She turned out just fine. We turned out just fine. We have Vi now too. We have our careers. We're good."

"Yeah." I agree and rest my head against his shoulder "We're good."


	43. Chapter 43

_Ruby's POV_

"Ruuuuby." Trevor whispers and kisses me "Ruby, baby wake up."

I open my eyes and find myself face-to-face with husband.

"Good morning." He smiles and kisses me again "Happy Birthday."

"Thanks." I laugh, cupping his face in my hands "Where are the kids?"

"Downstairs." He tells me "They helped me make breakfast for you. It'll be ready in like fifteen minutes"

"Did they now?"

"You bet." He smirks, hoping off the bed and extending a hand to me

I take it and he helps me stand up before escorting me downstairs.

"Hey goofballs!" He greets the babies "Look who's awake!"

They turn their heads to look at me and grins instantly spread across their faces.

"Hey goobers!" I smile and sit down on the floor to play with them

Aaron says something in their baby language I can't understand and hands me a block.

"For me?" I gasp, he nods "Why thank you, Aaron!"

He smiles and returns to playing, meanwhile, Olivia giggles and crawls into my lap.

"Oh Mommy!" Trevor says, approaching us from behind "Wanna open presents?"

"Sure." I smile as he sits down next to me, handing me a bag.

Inside, I find three small wrapped boxes, they read 'From Aaron', 'From Jonah', and "From Olivia'.

"Are these from you guys?" I ask, beginning to open Aaron's box

They ignore me.

"Okay then." I laugh

Aaron gets me a diamond necklace, Jonah the matching necklace, and Olivia the matching earrings.

"Thank you, babies!" I turn my attention to Trevor "Thank you."

"You're welcome." He smiles, leaning over to kiss my cheek. "Your present from me is in the front room."

"I can't open it in here?" I ask as I stand up, causing Olivia to start fussing "Hold on baby I'll be right back."

"Nope." He shakes his head "Close your eyes."

"Alright." I laugh as he steps behind me, covering my eyes to assure I don't cheat "Just tell me!"

"Nope you have to wait and see!" He tells me as we walk

"Trevor!"

"Ruby!" He mocks my tone "Alright are you ready?"

"Yes!"

"Are you sure you're really ready?"

"Baby!" I groan

"Okay okay." He laughs "Ready? 1...2...3!"

He takes his hands away, and at first I'm not sure where to look until I see the shiny, black, grand piano sitting right in front of me. Complete with a bright red bow on top and everything.

"Oh my god!" I exclaim, hugging him "Thank you!"

"You like it?" He chuckles

"Yes!" I laugh, kissing him "I love it. Thank you."

"Anything for my superstar."

* * *

><p>"Okay we're live in thirty seconds!" A producer announces<p>

"Good, let's get this over with." Jade whispers so only I can hear

Morgan Cross contacted us a few weeks back asking us to make an appearance on some local morning show today. Jade wanted to say no because it was my birthday, but I told her it would be fine.

Beck, Trevor, and the kids are backstage playing in our dressing room, when we're finished we'll all go out to lunch to celebrate.

"And 3...2...1!" Someone says

"Hello and welcome back!" The anchor sitting across from us, Diane, smiles towards the camera "As promised before the break, we're here with everybody's favorite pair of celebrity siblings Jade Oliver and Ruby Samuels! How are you ladies today."

"We're good." Jade tells her "Thank you."

"It's been a pretty eventful year for the two of you. I mean Jade, you wrote and produced 'Borderline' which did _outstanding_ at the box office by the way, congratulations."

"Thank you." She blushes

"And Ruby, you released a new album and went on a world tour. And somehow you both managed to find time to have babies in there! You guys are what? 24 and 28?"

"25." I correct her

"Oh that's right." The interviewer smiles, looking at her notes "Happy Birthday, Ruby."

The audience begins to cheer, which makes me blush.

"But back in January you two also decided to go public with a very personal piece of information..." Diane says, her tone suddenly serious "I won't go into details because I'm sure they can bring up some dark memories for you guys, but tell us, why? Why did you decide to share this story with the world?"

"Well..." I sigh "Unfortunately, we're not the only ones out there, you know? And I guess we figured, if our story gives someone the courage to reach out for help and get themselves out of a similar situation sooner than we did...then the story is worth sharing."

"Amazing." Diane gasps "Now, Jade. I understand that you and your husband, Beck, you two adopted Ruby when she was seventeen. Is that correct?"

"It is." Jade nods

"Do you mind if you ask why that point?" She asks "Why seventeen? She was close to adulthood at that point. Why not sooner?"

"Well in order for us to have adopted her any earlier, we would have needed my father's permission...which we wouldn't have been able to get." Jade explains "As for the rest...by the time my oldest daughter, Sophie, was born, Beck, Ruby, and I were like our own little family. And there was... an incident, back in early 2014. Without really getting into too much detail, I almost would not have been around anymore. If that had happened, Beck would've gotten to keep Sophie, but Ruby would've been collected by the state, and the family would've gotten split up. Thankfully I was fine. But I think that kinda scared Beck and I into really considering it. Then when my father...passed away...the state wanted to collect her anyway. So we stepped up and said we'd adopt her."

"She was basically my mom anyway." I add "She had been for a while."

Jade nods in agreement.

"Do your kids ever ask about what happened?"

"Well mine are too little to understand it, and Violet is too, but I believe Sophie has asked..." I say

"She heard about it at school." Jade confirms "Someone said something to her about how her grandpa was a bad guy or something along those lines."

"What did you and Beck tell her?"

"I feel like even at ten she's too little to really get it, you know?" Jade sighs "So we told her that Mommy's dad wasn't a very nice guy, but that it was okay because he isn't around anymore. And that seemed to satisfy her."

"Do you regret not sharing the information sooner?"

"No." We say in unison

"I think it came at appropriate time." Jade says

"Yeah." I agree "It's not really something you want flying around while you're trying to build a career."

"Well, ladies, I'm certainly proud of you for staying so strong throughout this while ordeal." Diane smiles "Coming up after the break, local band, Echo Medicine, will perform. We'll be right back."

"And we're clear!" Someone yells

"Thank you ladies." Diane smiles, extending her arm to shake our hands

"What do you mean they aren't here?" A voice yells

"They didn't show!" Another one answers

"We can't have dead air!" The first voice, which I learned belongs to the production manager, exclaims "Figure something out!"

People start scrambling all over, trying to solve whatever problem has surfaced.

"What's going on?" I ask

"I don't know." Diane shrugs

A man who looks like a stage hand rushes by, I reach out and grab his arm, he stops dead in his tracks.

"What's going on?" I ask him

"Echo Medicine didn't show." He explains "We have no one to close the show now!"

"Ruby..." Jade says

"Yeah yeah." I sigh "Jade and I will do it."

"What!" Jade exclaims "No! I'm not singing on TV!"

"But you have a great singing voice!"

"The world doesn't need to know that!" She exclaims "I'm not singing!"

"Fine." I roll my eyes "Do you have a piano and a guitar on hand?"

"We should." The stagehand says hopefully "Will you do it?"

"Depends on what your looking for..."

"It can be anything!" He assures me "One of your songs, a cover, it doesn't matter. We just need something!"

"I don't have rights to any of the new songs yet..." I bite my lip "Okay, we'll cover something."

"We?"

"Yeah we." I tell him "Just give me a few minutes to go find my husband..."

* * *

><p>"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Diane exclaims "Ruby Samuels and her husband, Trevor!"<p>

The audience cheers as the camera pans over to Trevor and I. I sit at a piano, he sits on a stool next to me, playing an acoustic guitar.

*(Ruby is _italics_ and Trevor is **bold** and then when they sing **_together it'll be both_**)*

"**We didn't care if people stared**

**We'd make out in a crowd somewhere**

**Somebody'd tell us to get a room**

**It's hard to believe that was me and you**

**Now we keep saying that we're okay**

**But I don't want to settle for good not great**

**I miss the way that it felt back then I wanna feel that way again**"

"**Been so long that you'd forget the way I used to kiss your nec**k"

"_Remind me, remind me_"

"**So on fire so in love. Way back when we couldn't get enough**"

"_Remind me, remind me_"

"_Remember the airport dropping me off_

_We were kissing goodbye and we couldn't sto_p"

**"I felt bad cause you missed your flight**"

"_**But that meant we had one more night**_"

"_Do you remember how it used to be_

_We'd turn out the lights and we didn't just sleep_"

"**Remind me, baby, remind me**"

"_Oh, so on fire so in love_

_That look in your eyes that I miss so much_"

"**Remind me, baby, remind me**"

"**I wanna feel that way**"

"_Yeah, I wanna hold you close_"

"_**Oh, if you still love me**_

_**Don't just assume I know**_"

"_Baby, remind me, remind me"_

_"Do you remember the way it felt?_"

"**You mean back when we couldn't control ourselves**"

"_Remind me_"

"**Yeah, remind me**"

"_All those things that you used to do_

_That made me fall in love with you_

_Remind me, oh, baby, remind me"_

"**Yeah, you'd wake up in my old t-shirt**

**All those mornings I was late for work**

**Remind me**"

"_**Oh, baby, remind me**_"

"_Oh, baby, remind me, baby, remind me"_

"**Yeah, you'd wake up in my old t-shirt**"

"_Remind me, yeah, oh"_

"**Baby remind me**"


End file.
